


To Tell the Truth

by WinterFang



Category: Original Work
Genre: Angst, Asexual Character, Attempted Rape/Non-Con, Blood, F/M, Falling In Love, False Sense of Security, Feels, Italian Mafia, Kidnapping, Lots of Angst, Original Character Death(s), Past Character Death, Protective Siblings, Rape, Secretly a Virgin, Siblings, Torture, Tragedy, change of heart
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-20
Updated: 2015-11-15
Packaged: 2018-04-27 06:59:50
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 44
Words: 90,155
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5038366
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WinterFang/pseuds/WinterFang
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>(This now a nammed work! Yay! After taking forever to figure out a name, I finally have one anyway, all these characters have been created by me (and inspired by Assassin's Creed - I will be changing the names later, but not now.) and are used by me. It will be turned into a novel, should I get the chance to publish it. It will be boring at first, but will soon pick up in the later chapters.. I do a chapter a day, about two thousand words when I'm trying to get it past the 75,000. And this is mainly just for seeing how many words I have)</p><p> </p><p>Two siblings 'win' a trip to Italy, where one of them dreams of going. The other one, is suspicious of why they won it for free, to stay at the highest ranking hotel in Florence.<br/>He checks it out...<br/>It seems fine, other than the family who owns it has clashed with a mafia seeking to destroy their business.</p><p>While the other sibling is ignoring the impending danger, one seeks to dig deeper and find out what is going on. But nothing surfaces, at least... not right away.</p><p>Will they be able to make it out alive? Or will they be kidnapped and killed, mercilessly?<br/>Who is going to tell the truth with all of these lies surrounding them?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

"Uh... Benny..." a female and seemingly worried voice rang out, interrupting the dark haired man from reading his newspaper and though no one read them any more except for old people - he still did. Despite the numerous paper-cuts on his fingers from handling the dangerous news-bringer.

The man narrowed his eyes and looked up, over to his younger sister. And she looked horrified for a split second, one split second.  
Then a slight and nervous smile spread across his sister's face and gave him another reason to be worried about what she did this time.

She was always doing things that she shouldn't be doing, but they would always end up enjoyable experiences with more good endings than bad, being who they were, the endings were sometimes bad.  
She did it without his permission and at times that could get really irritating, they both had work. But they also had days where they could schedule a vacation, any time.  
"Ari... what did you do..?" Benny asked her, a hint of warning in his voice - he was sure she had done something that he wouldn't approve of.

"I think..." she looked at the letter that was in her hands and then looked at him, finally giving her older brother a crooked smile, "I won us a... five day trip to Italy."  
"Holy-"

~

Of course she had, his sister had always wanted to go go Italy. And she just happened to see the words and she entered for a giveaway that seemed to take them all the way over to the boot shaped country. So that was why he was in a plane, a bored look on his face and trying to keep a hold of Ari who seemed to be bouncing up and down in her seat, looking out the window and gazing at the beautiful scenery. And gasping at everything, at how she couldn't wait until they landed.  
And guess what! She had even taught herself a lot of of Italian, so she could have full conversations with Italian people, and about him without him knowing.  
Yes, Ari was an annoying little sister. But, hell... Benny would do anything for her; he loved her so much.

And a few minutes later, after the older sibling had drifted off to sleep, he was suddenly being shaken and something was squealing in his ear, "Oh! Benny! We're here! Come on, lets go! He's waiting for us." Though the sister didn't wait for him, she was climbing over his lap and almost tripping over her own feet as she caught herself and then grabbed her bag.  
Aye, this girl was eager to see Italy.  
This 'he' person was the man who was supposed to take them to the 'grandest of all hotels' in his sister's words at least. Alas, there was nothing more known about this 'he'.  
Benny groaned and leaned back, he was going to get dragged all along this country... He wasn't ready for this. But if he didn't get up, she'd come back and kick his arse.

So, the dark haired sibling stood and grabbed his carry-on. Then he trotted after Ari, and once he left the plane, he then saw her looked around and point to something, motioning her brother to follow.  
He looked in the direction she was pointing and saw their names 'Benjamin & Arizona Felocife' on a white board - there was a stocky built man with his hair neatly combed that fit around his ears in a way that made on it him look good. He had a stoic, almost unhappy look on his face.  
The man had a slightly pointy chin, a slightly strong jaw and sharp brown eyes as he too scanned the crowed, looking for the two people who's names were written in bold letters. When he saw the two people heading to him, pulling away from the crowd, a smile broke out on his stoic face actually making him look like a friendly person. It's funny how a smile could change a person.  
Then he waved to them, making Ari break into a jog, waving her hand frantically to signal the man that she and her older sibling had arrived.

Benny couldn't help but groan once more, she was such a spaz! All the time, whoever she met, she was very excited to meet them, no matter who they were. She did all the talking while Benny hid in the background and waited for his chance to exchange names. Because he was never a fan of talking, he preferred to observe others.  
"Hey! Are you Fredric?" Ari asked as she came to a stop in front of the bulky man, Benny noticed that he was an inch or two shorter than the man who had their names. And perhaps a deal skinnier, he-himself had a build of a runner, not of a fighter.

The man chuckled, an easy-going way - maybe it was a little 'too' forced, before he was holding his hand out to shake Arizona's, "Federico." He corrected with a slight wink, but it was not at all flirtatious and there was no reason for Benny to bristle at it.  
"And yes, that's me."  
"I'm Arizona, as you already know. Call me Ari or Zona." His sister was very particular about people calling her first name to address her; it was only reserved for her family. She shook his hand with her own firm grip and then glanced over her shoulders to her silent brother, the girl brushed a strand of her long, dark brown hair behind her ear and glanced back to Federico, who had an Italian accent; no doubt a native.  
"This is my brother, uh-"  
"Benny." He said, stepping forward and accepting Federico's grip, noting slightly how strong it was. And no, there was no reason to say his full name because here this man stood. With it already.

"Nice to meet you." Benny wasn't so impressed, a little bit. But if this was to be their guide of Italy... he looked better for being a bodyguard.  
"So, you're the person who started the giveaway?" Ari asked as she started to walk off, heading to where the bag were supposed to be claimed. Apparently not caring if her brother was still following and not wondering off to check people out.  
"Ah, no, that would be my mama and papa- they own the finest hotel in all of Florence; they just wanted a chance for someone one from America to visit.

"To bring more business in." Benny said from behind them, usually silent. How obvious was it? Not very, by the average person.  
But to him, the above average, it was easy to figure it out.  
"Sì, I suppose so." Federico said slowly, like he had already started to dislike the older sibling.  
Don't judge a person so fast, was Ari's 'slogan' but it didn't work for Benny because that was what he did for work.  
Arizona then sent a look over her shoulder that clearly told Benjamin to shut his mouth.  
And so he did. Not because she wanted to him, but because he had nothing left to say to this Italian man, who his parents had so graciously offered to pay their round-trip fees.

And allowed them to stay at their five star, thousand dollar a night - hotel for free, for five days. All why they paid for all their expenses.  
Who did that? There was something... off about this, and why had Benny not looked through the letter, the 'brochure', to find out more about these people?  
He'd have to do some research when they get there, he had to ask Ari questions about what she had to do to get this.

Why had he not done this back in Denver?! Why? He was supposed to be smarter than that, he was supposed to learn from his mistakes... like the one in Paris, where they did get trapped underground, in the catacombs with a crazy guide who attempted to murder them - to sacrifice them.  
Benny had to-

"Benjee, are you even listening?" Ari demanded as she turned and looked at him - no, he actually wasn't. But he was not going to let his little sister know that, and; he probably should listen to what Fredric was saying. Just in case there was something that seemed suspicious.  
Well... being a detective... of course he was often suspicious. Of anyone and everything, his sister was a CIA agent (technically a receptionist). A secret, undercover one. The both of them were undercover, unknown about what they actually do. But they were put down for police or baker, something like that.  
And yes, they were on vacation.

Benny had only had this job for a couple of years, solved a couple of murders and mainly solved smaller cases.  
Arizona was in-training to be a real CIA agent, she was a receptionist for the head of the agency. But no one knew that, hopefully.

And with that, the male sibling cast a wary glance at Federico's back. This man was not an open book... he was so closed and secretive...  
Or Benny wasn't good at reading people - that was his job! Nah... this man was closed and secretive.  
But if there was anything he learned, it was you need to get closer, go get under their skin and figure out what it was that made them tick... He'd be getting under this person's skin, just in case...

There was always a 'just in case' with Benny, there was really... no one he trusted beside his sister and himself. No one else.  
Oh- yeah, Benjamin was supposed to be listening to the bodyguard, yeah... no. He glanced up at the carousel number, seven.  
From Denver to Florence, at least they had english words. Because he couldn't speak Italian to save his life.

Now, this might be confusing... But Benny had a purple bag. A purple and dark blue bag that almost seemed feminine.  
Why did he like purple? Who the hell knew!  
He just liked the color because his mom liked the color and she liked to wear it and it looked good on her, the reason why he would wear purple is because his sister said that it brought out his grey eyes.  
Well... grey and green.

"Here are mine." Arizona said as she reached over and grabbed the hot pink and red suitcases.  
Then Benny's single blue and purple one rolled around and Fredric grabbed it before he could get it, "I'll carry it." He said, stated. It was supposed to be in a friendly manner, but the detective did not take kindly to people handling his things without permission. Oh and there was a few things in there that weighted the bag down.  
A safety gun (a few, actually) and his badge. None of which Fredric was allowed to see.

Benjamin quickly reached out and took it from the helpful bodyguard, giving him a very dark look that practically warned him off, "I got it," and yes, there was an edge to Benny's voice. Though his heart was literally in his throat because keeping his identity and his sister safe was the only thing he could ever care about.

And yes, everyone was staring at him like he had grown a second head, he sent his sister an exaggerated look - telling her to get the topic back on her silently.  
"So, uh... you have a car that's gonna take us to the hotel?" She asked, shifting the bags and glancing to Federico. He was still eyeing Benny with suspicion, wondering what he was thinking and why he was acting strange.

But being a detective, meant you had to be closed off and even more secretive as well, or you had to put on a front. Benny was closing himself off, and that move was the wrong move actually.  
He knew that, because if he acted like that then there was no way he'd be able to get Frederic to trust him if he continued this way.  
"My brother is a germaphobe. I'm surprised he even allowed them to handle it..." she 'explained' while following after Frederic who was leading them to the car he had, waiting for their guests.  
So... now he was a germaphobe, "Mildly." Benny added softly as he followed them out, looking up at the sky, he was surprised to see the sun shining brightly. He hadn't been expecting that; yes, he had been forced to check the weather before they left and it was supposed to be raining when they got here.  
He wanted to say something witty, or sarcastic. That wouldn't receive good feed-back.

So he stayed silent and followed the bodyguard to the back of the black Buick and put his bag, along with Ari's, softly thanking Federico and then climbing in the back while Ari was making herself perfectly comfortable in the front seat - his sister could easily test someone and push them over the edge without herself knowing.  
She could be very ignorant and naive. And innocent, she knew the world, she did. But she was the one good thing that kept it balanced, she knew it.

"I suspect everyone is ready to go?" Federico said as he got in the car and looked to both of the siblings, Arizona gave him a bright smile, too eager to see Italy to actually care about his demeanor.  
While Benny slowly smiled and nodded, it was time to see what this hotel was like.


	2. Chapter 2

"And you remember Kristen?"  
"Sì, you know - you should be careful with-"  
"And when she saw Lylynn-" a smacking sounded, followed by the loud laughter of the first person who was talking, no one could decode what he was actually talking about because it sounded like he was talking crazy.  
But he hadn't heard the whole story, so there was no reason to assume that the man who was talking, was crazy.

Benny allowed his eyes to roam over to the two people, who were beside the six-story building of the hotel, there was a very skinny, stick-like figure with neatly combed hair that was a mix of brown and blonde, dirty blonde. He had bright blue eyes, a pale ish complexion with long fingers that were double jointed, okay, his sister couldn't point that out.  
But this man was a wanna-be artist. Drawing, he did pencils... Benny knew that because of the man pencils this man was 'holding'.  
There was one behind his ear, one in his mouth and another one he was twirling with those long, double jointed fingers. His face - consisted of a nose... it just... his nose, like... Benny couldn't describe it. It was just there and it was his and it was a unique nose that... long and straight and not fat, but not too long or short either.

And thinking like that just gave Benny a headache, "You should be more careful with the women's feelings, Ettoreo."  
What? Was that a nickname for the man who was sitting opposite of the man with the 'heart' shaped jaw? Or was it his name. Strange name. But it might be a common name, given he was in a whole knew country that he knew nothing about.

Benny hated not knowing, it gave him a sense of panic and fear and trying to take back control and knowing what the problem is so he could figure out how to solve it.  
The older sibling sighed as he followed after Arizona and Federico, they were going to head inside so the two could check in.  
"Ettoreo! Get inside." Frederic said as he cast a glance to the two males, "Will do!" The opposite, named 'Eotore' or whatever, replied to the man who he resembled.  
For natives of this land, they spoke a lot of english very often, you'd think that they'd slip into Italian once or twice... But apparently not.  
Benny looked at the two men and happened met Ettoreo's gaze for a moment; hard, unwavering and golden. If Benny could stop, he would've but he had to break his gaze first - so he could catch the door that Ari had so graciously held for him.

And if Benny was not mistaken, that man outside had gold eyes, a golden iris that seemed to glow. Much like a hawk or an eagle, how strange. Yes, his thoughts were clustered together like cows huddled for warmth or food. But he wouldn't necessarily compare his thoughts to cows.

Benny carried his bag, and one of his sister's bags, into the hotel. He took a glance around and found it to his liking, the inside was way nicer than the outside. Coming from a man who didn't like rustic things, he enjoyed modern. For some reason, it just gave him a sense of security when most things didn't.

The floor was a sleek white, marble floor with black-smooth tiles that forms a square every three feet, there were two reception desks, made of white 'marble' as well, golden linings along it, there was a pillar separating the two desks, but it was open behind them.  
On the ceiling, there were three, small chandeliers. Of course there was a golden color for the crown molding.

The chairs looked nice, if you like leather. White with black buttons on the back, two sofas and a few chairs, also a coffee bar and a fruit bowl. Not that different from American hotels, the fancy ones at least. This was considered top of the line in Italy, thank God it was free.  
After Benjamin had gotten himself a good look around, he wondered back over to Arizona, who was at the desk and was talking to a woman with medium brown hair with a tad bit of grey in it, a friendly smile and green eyes. She was around forty... maybe forty five or even older, she didn't have as many wrinkles as he would expect from a person her age.

"Ciao!" Ari said in a friendly manner as she set her bag down and then raised up to look at the woman.  
"Oh, ciao to you too." The woman said, looking a bit shocked, just mildly surprised that she could speak a little Italian. She glanced to her son, and raised her eyebrows a bit.  
All he did was shrug, as if telling his mother he had no idea how she knew Italian.

"Questi sono gli ospiti?"  
Benny allowed a slight sigh to escape his mouth, apparently he lied. The woman had suddenly shifted to Italian so the two Americans wouldn't understand what they were saying.  
But what they didn't know, was Arizona could understand what they were saying. And it clear that she was confused at what the other woman meant.  
"Sì, Madre. Questi sono." Federico replied with a slight nod, stepping away from the desk so the two siblings could check in.  
Indeed, Benny was curious to know what they had said because Ari seemed like she was trying to decide what their conversation meant.

Why did he learn how to speak French instead of Italian? Because at that time he didn't know that they'd be going on Italy. They went to France upon deciding who should learn how to speak what.  
He would have to bug his sister for the conversation later, and the laptop. Benny looked to them woman's tag and saw that is read Maria Auditore.

"Maria Auditore?" He said out-loud, testing out the last name. It was somewhat accurate. The woman who owned the name, glanced to him, "You can call me Mama Maria."  
Benny raised his eyebrows, "Does every one call you that?" He shared a look with his sister before glancing back to Maria. She must be very friendly with her guests if she wanted them to call her 'Mama' Maria.  
"Sì, of course. We're all family here." She said with a friendly smile, Benny raised his eyebrows use a bit and then glanced to Fredric. No, he was not that friendly with people he just met, and why on earth should he?

Ari then poked him, 'its their slogan' she mouth to him before handing her credit card to the woman - Benny didn't feel as bad now, it was better that she didn't actually mean the family part.  
And yes, he always had a thing about strangers knowing more than they should about him and his sister, that's why secrets were most important to him.

"Do you guys plan on updating the outside of the hotel?" Benjamin asked casually as he took the key-card and pocketed it, then he looked back to 'Mama' Maria.  
"My brother is afraid of rustic things." Arizona explained with a sympathetic look to Maria, but he wasn't afraid of them. They just seriously made his wary, unhappy and uneasy because... they just weren't comforting at all. He very much disliked to be reminded of what the past was like. The past scared him and he wasn't sure why, anything old startled him and he would always feel a sense of dread. It wasn't anything he could figure out for himself.

"Couldn't you have a more noble fear?" Came another voice as both the men from outside entered, it was Ettoreo and the other man.  
"And since when has it become your business?" Benny returned, turning and glaring at the man, "Since you became part of the 'family'." The man returned as he walked over, the taller looked a bit nervous and wary about what Ettoreo was doing.  
His dark hair, black hair, was tied back in a small bun and his golden eyes were fierce and rather bright. As if proposing a challenge.  
"Ettoreo, relax." The artist said he grabbed the dark haired man, who only reached to his neck.

"Thank you, Luciano." Mama Maria said as she gave a look to her other son, not enjoying his behavior with the guests.  
Benny wasn't enjoying it either and Arizona was just standing there, awkwardly because she wasn't so sure on what she should be doing except for waiting for her brother.  
"Your room is on the third floor, your room number is on your card and dinner is at five-thirty." She said, giving them a slight smile, Ari thanked her with a smile before she grabbed her brother and took him along to the elevator.

Him and Ettoreo had broken gazes after a moment, only so he could look at Benjamin's sister, which earned even more of a glare.  
Earlier, this man had mentioned two female names 'Luciano' was trying to tell him to be wary of something...  
This man was a player and he was looking to hit on Benny's sister, no. That was not going to happen, and he would make it clear if Ettoreo every tried to come near her. Though being a detective; he wasn't afraid of doing an agent's work.

Benny made a noise of protest in the back of his throat, quickly grabbing Ari's bags as he was pulled along into the elevator.  
"What the hell was that? Ever since we got here, you have been acting so weird!" She said, pressing the button to the third floor, then she turned around and glared at him, her bright green eyes were clearly showing her annoyance, her lips twisted into a frown was even worse.  
But he could not make himself feel bad about it, she knew who he was and she knew this was how he acted whenever they went somewhere knew, but just because they went to her dream country, she expected him to act different?

That wasn't how it worked!  
"You know who I am, Ari." He said softly, "I can't change."  
She sighed and allowed her arms to drop from their crossed position across her chest, "You can't try to act normal?"  
Benjamin sighed lowly and shook his head, it wasn't likely that she would understand, she wasn't him, "That was normal for me, when I'm in a new place." He said gently, hoping that his little sister would drop it, he has no information about this place and suddenly he was here.  
Before he could thoroughly and smartly think it over and plan for the worst. But maybe Arizona did that on purpose to make him 'normal'... that could be a little insulting to his existence.

And after he finished speaking, his sister shook her head and looked away from him, the ride actually wasn't that long and the door opened afterwards and the two siblings stepped out, Arizona leading the way. Leaving Benny to get her bags, he did think about just leaving them there... But in the end, he stopped and picked her bags up for her and then started after his sister. Silence fell between them, she had realised that her brother was stressed and needed time to adjust...  
What she didn't know, was he was scared of new places. He didn't like new territory and things he did know. It scared him - because he thought he'd lose every thing if he knew nothing.  
That was Benny's biggest fear... losing everything he had. To the unknown or not.

The younger opened the door to their room, it was one of the first doors on the right that made their 'home'. And as they entered - Arizona immediately went to the bathroom, while he went over to the desk and got out the laptop from his sister's bag, then Benny opened it and logged in.  
After connecting to the internet, he typed in the last name 'Auditore'...

And Benny was shocked at what he discovered.


	3. Chapter 3

"Nothing! Zip, zero, zilch, nada. Nope and none!" Benny exclaimed loudly as he threw his hands up, for some reason, it came as a surprise to him that there was nothing about them because he was expecting something and there was nothing. Why was he expecting something, because he didn't trust these people and usually he would be conducting all kinds of research on them until he found something.

But Benny, found nothing. After a half hour of searching, that was all of took. Search the names in the internet while also doing it in the CIA network that only he had access to.  
It didn't require a internet connection, which was a very good thing. No one could hack into it.

He did those once, with their guide in Paris, found nothing on him and it turned out he worshiped 'gods' that required sacrifices to keep him blessed for life. Benny didn't believe there was anyone out there, anyone more powerful. There was just them; he kinda thought that the world was just there, it was there and it would always be there until someone decided to blow it up. Which wasn't likely on purpose, more of stupidity and on accident.

His sister, thought different on it.  
"So, how was the world created?" She had asked them when they had one of these many arguments.  
"I don't know... it was just kinda there." He would reply and she would roll her eyes at his 'stupidity'.  
"And how did we, living organisms, get here?"  
"I don't know, we were just there too." He honestly didn't know what he believed, but he didn't believe in God, there was just no proof for him. Being a detective, he just can't go on a piece of information that has nothing to back it up. He just can't take someone's word for it unless he has physically proof. Or something that would just convince him that it was there.

"Look, Arizona - I don't know how we got here, and I don't care. All that matters is that I'm here now until I'm not." And he ended the conversation there. He always did and she didn't try to continue it.

"Null, nichts... not a damm thing." He muttered, not realising he was filtering in and out of German. Another language he knew, his first language actually. Ari's happened to be Russia... they were a bit multi-lingual.  
"Why did you learn German again?"  
"Just in case." He replied, searching Auditore again, it bringing up the results and him making an annoyed sound in the back of his throat, really - he was too focused on this and would just reply to whatever Ari said with 'just in case'.  
"It's a useless language!"  
"Yeah, try saying that when you're negotiating with Nazís." Benny returned, soon leaning back in the chair and sighing as he found out that the only thing that happened was they got tangled up with some mafia and Ettoreo had to shoot the leader to save his family.  
Really brave of them, and after that, nothing else... everything was completely fine.

Maybe...  
Benny worked his jaw before he learned forward and started to search for the mafia in the CIA system. And... nothing, again... what and why the hell... couldn't he find anything...  
Hell, he just couldn't go up to one of the Auditores and asked them about what happened here. Benny paused a moment, leaning back in his chair with his hands folded behind his head.  
No... He couldn't ask an Auditore... but he could ask Luciano. If the other knew about it, he'd just have to figure out how long Luciano has known the Italian family-

"Would you stop it?" Arizona asked as she walked over to him and stopped, glancing down at her older sibling, Benjamin looked up at her and then glanced at what she was wearing.  
She was wearing a long, lilac empire waist dress with fake emerald jewels on the neck line and around her waist, "Why are you wearing that?"

~

It had seemed to escaped her brother's mind that tonight they would be dining with the lovely people who owned the hotel, which was very generous of them. She hadn't ever met anyone who would ever do that. They must be a very friendly family, she she was glad to meet them and hoped to make a few friends in the five days that they were here, it was not hard for her to girlfriends because she was so friendly and willing to help people.  
But she wasn't open to her own life, she created a fake life for herself... other than being an agent, she always wanted to be a artist. She was rather good at it, too. A self-taught one.  
And she drew when she was stressed, scared, sad... any time; but drawing did not have the thrill of being an agent.

And coming to Italy has always been her dream, for whatever reason, Arizona just loved it. She couldn't figure out why she had always had a yearning for it. Thinking about it made her smile and be wistful... And so, when she saw the chance to go there for free, with everything played, of course she entered and prayed that she and Benny would be able to spend some time there and have memories that they'd never forget!

And apparently, she got her answer and somehow... they won. And the only thing she needed to do was put down their (fake) jobs, ages, name and how many people would be coming along.  
These days would be an unforgettable experience. She knew that.

"Well, brother - we are having dinner with the owners of the hotel." She said, matter of fact like, what Arizona didn't understand, is why he couldn't relax. She knew he was a detective. But she didn't know that one trip to Paris would make him over protectively insane.  
He said that he never wanted a repeat of what happened and she understood that, but she was fine now. She knew how to defend herself, if the time ever came. If. She never thought that it would...

Arizona looked down at her hand and then rotated her wrist a moment, the memories of -  
"So? I'm sure it's something casual." Came Benny's voice, interrupting her train of thought as she glanced at him, giving her a look with those grey and green eyes, they never seemed like his real eyes... for some reason, Ari always thought that those weren't his real eyes...  
That he switched his eyes with a wolf's eyes and... those eyes just reminded her of a wolf, a predator and she wondered how he had them.

The girl smiled slowly to herself, and then remembered what they were talking about, so she shrugged slowly to her brother, "Well... you might be the only one who's underdressed."  
"And you will be the one is over dressed." He said as he turned away and started to finish up on his 'investigation', she sighed and then shook her head, her brother was such a jerk.  
The t-shirt and jean jacket, with black jeans looked fine on him. It just apparently wasn't dressy enough for her, "Try to be a little more fancy?"  
"I am not changing my clothes for them." Benny said firmly, making the younger sibling groan, she turned away from him and grabbed her yellow sun-dress; then she stalked back to the bathroom. He was such a stubborn oaf!

Does what he wants with no care for anyone else...  
The girl frowned when she looked in the mirror, perhaps she was a bit overdressed. Arizona sighed and took off the first dress, lowering her dark brown hair from the side bun - she took off her necklace and set that by the sink before she put on the sun-dress and fluffed out her curly brown hair. Okay, there, that was better.  
Having come here in a plaid shirt, tank top and jean shorts... this was much better. And perhaps now it was her turn to start exploring, but only she wouldn't be on the internet.

"Alright, Benny - I'll come and get you when the food is ready." She said as she glanced to him and then moved over to the door, she pulled it opened and took another glance to her older brother who was not listening to her, at all.  
He was more focused on his 'case', though she was convinced that he wouldn't find anything, if there was something... her brother would've found out about it.

Said man waves her away, but he wasn't even paying attention to her. Perhaps if he was, he wouldn't be allowing Ari to just go off without his O.K.  
Being the overprotective, stubborn and annoying brother he was. Good thing his work often distracted him.

The girl grabbed her purse and made sure she had her keycard before she left the room and shut it behind herself, then Arizona walked over to the elevator, two doors down, pressed the 'down' arrow and waited patiently until it came up to her.  
The girl stepped inside and then went to the lobby, first; an ATM so she could get some 'Italian' money then shed just walk around and buy things that appealed to her.

As she stepped out of the elevator, she was looking down at her purse to get her credit card, not paying attention to who could be in front of her and she happen to run into a handsome Italian boy, "Merda! Mi dispiace, I did not mean to run into you." He said quickly, taking a step back and grabbing the woman gently so she wouldn't fall back.  
"Oh, no. I'm sorry, I should've been paying attention." Arizona said, rubbing where his arm happened to connect to her chest, ouch... he was seriously strong when not paying attention to what he was doing. Then again, it was also her fault because she had been looking for her stupid card. It was rather embarrassing because she was usually more aware of her surroundings.

"Ettoreo, it is a pleasure to meet you." The man was saying when she raised her head again to get a better look, that was when she realized who he was - the one man who stood up to her brother, "Oh! You are the guest!" He said when he saw her face, apparently Ettoreo recognised her as well.  
The guest? It sounded like she was the only one here. So far, Ari knew it was only her and her brother.

She chuckled and nodded, "Yes, I am the guest - Arizona," she held her hand out for him to shake, instead, he took it and kissed the top of her hand. No, Ari couldn't help but blush when he did it, "It is nice to know your name, Amore." Ettoreo said, wagging his eyebrows a bit as he pulled away.  
He didn't know that she could speak Italian - but she could and being called 'love' was new, she had not ever had a male companion other than her brother. Even for her age, she just hadn't been interested in a relationship back then.

And while Ari was no detective, it was easy to tell a player - only because Benny had told her how they acted.  
Her eyes connected to him and she had to suppress a gasp, seeing that he had golden eye. Those of an eagle! Amazing it was!

And then another man came up, he was rather tall - very skinny. But he had kind eyes and a gentle smile upon his face, "Ciao," he said with a slight wave, coming to a stop beside Ettoreo - she had to admit, being around men, other than her brother and one at a time, was a little over-whelming. But Arizona smiled anyway, "Hi." She said, unable to stop herself from blushing, and for whatever reason, she was getting a weird feeling the longer Ettoreo stared at her with those golden eyes of his, giving her a very uncomfortable feeling. Just the way he was sizing her up... like a meal...

Luckily, the taller one put a stop to it.  
"Ettoreo, leave the woman alone. She is not yours to taint." He said, speaking in Italian as he slapped his hand across the man's chest, Arizona had to bit her lip to keep her composure; 'not yours to taint'? What in the hell was that supposed to mean? And these words freaked her out.  
"Yes, yes... I know. I was not looking at her in that way." Ettoreo replied, looking annoyed and a bit guilty because he was lying, "Weren't you?" The taller of the two asked, making the shorter give him a look, "Just do not touch the guest."  
"I don't know, Luciano... I don't think we should do this..." Ettoreo said, his voice dropping lower as he glanced to Arizona, who was now 'checking' her phone.  
"If we don't, do you not know the trouble your mama and papa would be in? I do not like it either..." Luciano trailed off before shaking his head, not wanting to continue this conversation further.

"Hey! Do you know any shops that I can go to?" She asked them, looking up from her phone at the two of them, "Of course! What do you like?" Luciano asked, making Ettoreo elbow him in the side, as if he was annoyed that he spoke first.  
"Uh, arts." She said after a moment of thinking, she did want to try a new style of painting, water coloring perhaps...  
"Ah! An artist? Or is it a hobby?" Luciano asked as he turned around and started to the front of the door, beckoning her to follow him. Arizona raised her eyebrows used before she trotted after the man, she was slightly wary, but she was willing to give him a go.

Ettoreo walked after them, a slightly thoughtful look on his face as he did so.  
"Uh, artist." She replied - looking around once he opened the door, then she smiled at the beauty she saw. This was defiantly somewhere she could live for the rest of her life.  
Oh, and there was anything thing Ari wanted to ask them, "Uh, the letter said I was to have a guide... who would it be?"  
Luciano glanced over his shoulder, not looking at her - most likely to his companion as if they were deciding silently what they were to do.

"It is either one of us, which ever you prefer." Ettoreo explained as he came up beside her and gave her a gentle smile.  
Ari relaxed herself just a bit and then smiled back to him, it would be alright.


	4. Chapter 4

Okay, so the mafia was some local crime group that used to terrorize people for their money. Specifically the Auditores.  
They would harass them for their money and then threaten them if they didn't get it if them by the end of week, month, day... whatever.

Once or twice they shot the father of this family for standing up against them and then 'destroyed' the inside of the hotel.  
They couldn't get the cops in the business because that was also a threat that they'd kill the youngest of the Auditore family; and it all went down one night... the Auditores gave the mafia cash and then, they decided it wasn't enough, threatened to shoot Mam- Maria, Ettoreo happened to step in and take his father's gun where he shot two of them.  
The first was killed with a bullet to the head and the second was injured badly - it wasn't likely that he survived.

And after that, the Auditores didn't see the mafia anymore.

Happy ending.

At least that is what a local woman told him, who (thankfully) spoke English really well. Benny was grateful for her, though there was no names on the people who belonged in the mafia.  
And it also seemed likely that these people were itching to forget it. It must've been really bad - why didn't the police ever investigate? It just struck him as odd as he thought about it.  
"Thank you, ma'am." He said with a polite smile, then he turned away and squinted against the sun, looking down the road for a familiar face, though he couldn't see one.

Why in the hell was he outside? Oh yeah, after a couple minutes of Arizona being gone, he finally realised that she was actually gone. So he decided that he was going to go after her while also getting all the information he needed.  
So far, it was more detailed than the reports from the police. It was a 'case-closed' one, but why?  
The mafia was surely still out there!

Or did they think that they just disbanded after the people they harassed for years shot someone?  
No, that wasn't how it worked out.  
Either Italy is thirty percent stupider than America... or there was something else going on that Benny hadn't found out about. How about he just keep his mind open about that...

~

"Ari?" Benny rolled over on the sand and pressed his face into it, coughing out blood. That clotted with the tiny, golden grains. How in the hell was there sand...?  
Every breath was raspy, and it hurt - there wasn't much air he could get in... the deeper he tried to breath, it hurt even worse. It made him cough.  
Every time he moved or coughed, it gave him the reason why he should stay out, but the faint screams, were stronger than the pain, reminding him why he had to get up.

Another scream sounded, followed by his name. Benny took in a huge gulp of air, almost swallowing sand when he did that. Then he held it and shifted his weight back so he was sitting on his knees, he couldn't feel his chest any more, he didn't know if he was still breathing.  
He could feel his raspy breaths, little oxygen coming into his lung. He could also feel the trickle of blood coming from his parted lips, running down his throat and staining his shirt, dripping and staining his pants.  
He was glad he hadn't been wearing his favorite outfit.

And other sharp scream made Benny shoot up on his bare feet and look around the room with blurry eyes, it was lit by a single torch... He could make it, he could make it. A step, another ragged breath and a groan. Repeat, a step - a ragged breath and another groan of pain.  
His body wanted to shutdown, to give up and just die. But Benny was not going to die, he wasn't going to let his sister die...

The man turned the moment he was close enough to the torch and raised his bound hands to the flame, clenching his teeth as he felt the sting of it. Slowly, the ropes fell away from his wrist and he could pull his hands away, when Benny saw that he had also burst his wrists in the process, he still couldn't care about that.

Another scream, making him kick into action by grabbing the torch, and though he was feeling sluggish, about ready to collapse, he went on. "Ari..." Benny called weakly as he limped through the opening in the chamber he was just in, pain shot up and down his spine, there was a constant throbbing on his wrists - a sharp stabbing made itself known near his ribcage. Every breath that came through his mouth or his nose was followed by a grasping noise because he wasn't getting enough oxygen - there was so much strain on his functioning lung...

"BENNY!!" Came his sister's voice that was filled with pain and fear; he was getting closer, he just needed to push himself faster...  
His limps were soon straightening out and he was half running through the catacombs, bones all around him. Benny was desperate to get there, a moan of pain sounded - when he turned and screamed as loud as he could, "Arizona!" And then he was running for her.

~  
~

Benny lowered his hands to his side and then took off at a jog, having spotted his sister and her yellow dress - he was here to get her and bring her back. She shouldn't have gone off in the first place without saying where she was going, he hated it when she does that...  
Or he should've been paying more attention and stopped her himself before she went out...

Benny hated a lot of things that she did. But it made her, her. And he did love her, just certain qualities were annoying. He was sure all siblings felt that way. If they didn't, then he was a horrible brother.

"Seriously, Ari- what did I..." Benny trailed off as he grabbed the woman and turned her around, only to see that it wasn't his sister it was someone else entirely, "Really? In all of Florence, you had to wear a yellow sundress like my sister?" He said in an annoyed tone, he was annoyed because who did that?!

The woman did not know that his sister was going to wear a similar dress, wear her hair nearly the exact way and then run off with an angry brother chasing after her. Benjamin sighed and let go of the woman before he continued on down the road, keeping his eyes open for Arizona.

And running around this little town was not something he wanted to be doing right now, he wanted to gather information, but for whatever reason, finding Arizona was more important as of right now.  
Perhaps he wanted to tell her what he found; then again, she could just brush it off... like she always did. She rarely listened to him, but that was just like her... if he really wanted her to listen to him, then he would mention what happened in Paris.

But that was a very sensitive subject for the both of them. And it was better not to mention it, the anger and the pain and the sadness would show through and... Benny just wouldn't mention it to her - doing this alone and without her knowing was better.  
The man slowed down as he got in the shopping part of town and he just stopped and froze and just... breathed. Even though it was thick, and there was almost nothing coming to him as he did so.

"Arizona!" Benny suddenly gasped out, taking in a real breath as he spotted his sister with two of the men from the hotel - sitting outside a coffee shop and chatting as if they had been friends their whole lives.  
And that struck him as odd-ish, not for Arizona, but for the others. They didn't seem like the people who would make friends with a complete stranger; Ettoreo was looking at his sister with a fondness in his eyes, not like a lust-kinda-fondness... just, he was fond of her company.

Don't judge a person by their front.  
But it was a front, so you had every right to judge it.

For some reason, as Benny walked to them, a calmness came over him - he no-longer felt annoyed or unhappy with his sister's decision and he was only curious as to what she had been doing while he was brooding over the suspicion that was nagging him at a deeper level that Ari clearly couldn't see. If she could, then she would try to help him and she would understand what was bothering him and why he was acting this way...  
At least Tina would've been thinking that way... Benny worked his jaw and shook his head, their past wasn't there, so it didn't matter. He needed to remember that the past wasn't the present and it didn't matter... not now.

"So... I see you've been busy." Benny said casually when he came up to the table, halting the three's conversation, Luciano seemed to be surprised, Ettoreo was not happy and Arizona looked guilty.  
"I- Benny..." she started to say, looking like she was trying to figure out what to say to him, so he wouldn't get angry; angry at her for making him worried, "Hey, it's fine." The man said lightly, giving a slight smile to his baby sister and then glancing at the two men, offering some glare to Ettoreo and then a smile to Luciano, he like that man.  
He looked like he had good qualities, Benjamin respected men who had good qualities. Not those would just go for any open woman (that was directed to Ettoreo.)  
And even though Benny didn't know them, he was a rather good tell of character.

"What? Nothing to say?" Ettoreo taunted Benny, smirking at the man for whatever arrogant and self-centered reason of his own. Benjamin was obviously unimpressed with the man attempting to challenge him, not answering was the best thing to do, so he didn't, instead he looked to his sister, "Can I have the card? I want to make a withdraw." He said, holding his hand out. Hopefully they had english at the ATM...  
"Oh! Yeah, sure." Maybe the reason why she was a bit slow to respond is because she didn't expect him to be as calm as he was - she really expected her brother to act like it was a big deal...

She offered him the card, which he took - "I'll be back in a moment." Okay, he really had no idea what he was going to buy with the money he was getting from the machine. Seriously, Benny had no idea... He only did this so he wouldn't have to stalk her around to make sure she was okay. Out-right going up to her was the best thing he could do, and yes, he was expecting a jab from Ettoreo which he knew how to put an end to.

It was kinda... well, perhaps it wasn't so surprising that the one man didn't like him, it was natural for people not to like Benny because Benny didn't like most people now in-days.  
Especially around his sister, he'd do anything for her. The man took a glance down at his scarred wrists before he went over to the ATM (and praise the Lord, they had english; not that he believed in God, anyway), he got a hundred dollars, thinking he wouldn't need more because there... wasn't anything... he needed...

Benjamin raised his head up and his grey eyes happened to catch sight of two men, wearing all black... one was talking into their earpiece and the other was just staring at him, who wore black now in days?  
Unless they planned on breaking into something... or they were apart of a mafia....  
Benny clenched his jaw when he felt a sense of dread in the pit of his stomach as he looked down to the card in his hand, it was supposed to be a joke. But it wasn't so funny. Not with him knowing what happened five months ago. The detective raised his head again and blinked in surprise seeing as they were gone and there was likely no trace of them.  
He had questions that needed answers, and Benny swore... He was going to get them one way, or another.


	5. Chapter 5

And by the time Benny got back to Arizona, all hell had broke loose over his head and was just a rush of everything he didn't want to do, honestly. And she knew he didn't want to do them, but she also knew he couldn't say no because she was his sister and he could not let her go, alone, unsupervised with a man that they both barely knew.

"You did what?" He asked, still kinda dumbstruck as he sat there and just watched her while she took a drink form her cup and then smiled to him, "Yes - I got us a tour on the Grand Canal, Ettoreo said he'd take us." Ugh, not that man. Benny seriously had a disliking for him because he just didn't seem so right... just shifty.  
Also annoying and loud, perhaps a player as well with the way he was hitting on the barista in the coffee shop. Benjamin scoffed and looked away from him before glancing to Arizona and realising that they had been talking about something and just thinking about how annoying Ettoreo was, made Benny forget the subject for a few seconds. But then he picked it up again without missing a beat, perhaps the subject was Ettoreo and water, both which he very much disliked and God-damm-it. She knew it and she just ignored his dislikes.  
Which were apparently 'fears' in the real world. That shtuff made him roll his eyes.

"On a boat, he will be taking us wherever he pleases?" Benny asked, wanting his sister to see the... danger of it. Well, he did have a background check running on Ettoreo and all of his family, but it would most likely say everything that he already knew from the locals.  
It still never hurt to check.

"It's a gondola, and yes, he's supposed to be our guide and me and him are getting along just fine." She said with a shrug, they were getting along just fine - but she couldn't see why he was getting along with her so easily.  
"Yeah - no, he's trying to make a pass at you." Benny hissed out between his clenched teeth, "He doesn't want to be friends with you! People try to get to you because you are so easy to get to, Ari. Think about it! Use your brain that the mythical being gave you." Benny said, trying not to raise his voice and failing; the only reason he was shouting at her was because he concerned and he wished that she could see the world was instead of the way she wanted it to be. It never worked that way, it never did and it never would.

The man paused for a moment, sucking in a breath, "Do you know what his name means? If mean loyal, does he look loyal to you?" He motioned to the man who was now flirting with a different woman... God, he hated people like that. It made him sick to his stomach to see women being treated like they were nothing.  
Now Benny had never had a girlfriend because he was too busy with his life, hell, he was still a virgin. But he never planned on getting married or having kids, so that was fine with him and it did nothing to his ego, at all. Everything he did was his own choice and no-one should be able to tell him what he should live like.

"His name is Ettoreo, there is a difference." She said, following his gaze to the man for a split second before she was looking back to her brother where he gave her a disbelieving look, "Ettore mean loyal. Ettoreo is a take on that, meaning 'like loyal'."  
"I don't see the difference." Benny said after a moment, as he tried to process what she was saying, when he didn't see the difference. Really, Benny didn't.  
"Like loyal - doesn't mean loyal. It means that he's loyal to whoever he picks. Not the first person he meets." She said, leaning back slightly and observed her brother still looked a bit dumbfound at how she was sticking up for a person she hadn't met before and doesn't know much about.

Ari sighed before shaking her head, Ettoreo was now walking over and Benny did not want to be around him - but it seems that that he would have now choice because she was forcing him.  
He understood that she wanted the both of them to have a good time, but he wouldn't be able to until he was sure that these people were trustworthy... the two men he had seen was still bugging at this back of his mind - and for once, he attempted to think like his sister and say that it was nothing. And she would probably be right, people stared and people wore the same colors for no reason. And besides, they were in Italy!  
Was he being sarcastic? Probably, there was just too many 'what ifs' than to just go with it.

But their cultures were different, way different... there was no way he could attempt to ignore that.  
Benny worked his jaw and then looked away from them, perhaps he should go back to the hotel to see if those background checks were ready for him. You know, that was what he was going to do.  
The man grimaced slightly, for no reason, setting down the card. He smiled slightly to Arizona, once more ignoring Ettoreo. And while he was still debating whether or not to tell her back what happened at their hotel, about everything that he had 'seen'... maybe he would, back at the hotel.  
Then again that would give her ammunition for an argument...

"I'll see you back at the hotel." And with that, the man turned around and shifted his hands into his pockets, leaving his little sister in the hands of two men. Luciano was perhaps a man he could trust.  
You know... he wouldn't tell her, it was the only was to keep her safe.

~

Arizona watched her brother go, she bit her lip after a moment and looked to Ettoreo who was sipping on his coffee and waiting for Luciano to come back so they could continue the conversation.  
She did feel a bit uncomfortable about the conversation, the word 'taint' just didn't sit right for her, in a way - she knew that Luciano meant that he shouldn't pick her up and dumb her on the side of the road.  
He shouldn't treat her like she was something to play with, and if he would've put it that way, Ari wouldn't feel too weird about it.

And just thinking about it, she decided that she wouldn't tell Benny about it... She was sure it wouldn't hurt anyone.

~  
~

He clenched the torch harder in his hand when he saw the sight of his sister, tied down to a slab of concrete, her shirt ripped open and their guide who took them down here and then trapped them, crouching over her with a knife in his hand and he was cutting into her stomach, writing words and saying them as he cut into her flesh.  
Arizona had stopped screaming and fell limp, most likely she had gone into shock from the blood loss.

Benny was at a complete loss of word as he watched what unfolded in front of him. He was rooted to the spot because of the shock and now... no air was coming to him and...  
The man raised the dagger above his head as he finished writing the words on her stomach, "HEY!" Benny suddenly shouted, taking a step forward and raising the torch as a challenge, anything to get the man away from his sister. He never knew... that tonight would test them, would prove to challenge their lives - that they would have to fight for them... Benny never knew that this would happen, that his family would get hurt - he swore to his parents that he wouldn't ever let anyone hurt them  
And now that he had let them, all of them, down... he would get his revenge.

The man jumped off of the slab of concrete and ran at Benny, his dagger raised to kill the man that hadn't died the first time he tried to kill him. And as he got closer, expecting his prey to be weak, the torch was shoved right in his face, making its home in his eye socket.  
Benny side stepped after he had put the torch in the man's eye, pushing him on his back so that he would trip and fall over his feet. The dagger left the guide's hand, and while he attempted to get the torch out of him, Benny lunged and grabbed the dagger.

And then he just released the rage, the anger and fear and all of it was just... coming out as he kicked the guide over, wanting to be the last person this man ever saw before he died.  
The guide opened his mouth to scream curses, but it was too late. Benny started to bring the knife down, over and over again on the man's face, neck and chest. Stopping everywhere he could and screaming out his anger and frustration, every time it came down.  
Blood splattered all over the Benny's face, and it was warm and sticky. But he could barely feel it as he tore piece, after piece of skin away from the guide's face. He was dead by the time Benny threw the knife away, but the man wasn't done yet.

His mind was fogged, he couldn't breath properly, his chest hurt badly and he was covered in blood. But the pain was ignored, not being able to breath was ignored as he raised his fists up and held them together before he brought them down on the man's mutilated face. Over. And over. And over. Again, again, and again. Until his skull was beaten in and all kinds of tissue was all over his hands.  
And the pain in his hands was sever, his blood mingled with the dead-man's blood...

Francis... his name was Francis. Benny stopped and looked at his hands, seeing them soaked in red and it was frightening...  
Looking down at his face was even more awful... it was like someone pounded it in with a mallet... And Benny did that, he was the one who did that because he couldn't control his anger.  
He... couldn't let Arizona see who he was, he couldn't let her see what he was. Benny pushed himself off of Francis where he slowly stood up and walked over to a rack of rocks that were supposed to be used to remodeling. Benny grasped the stick that was used to hold it up before he pulled it away and watched as the large rocks crush the guide's body...

"Arizona..." Benny mumbled as he turned around and limped over to her, he checked her pulse with shaky hands, praying that she was still alive, or else he'd have no-one left.  
Tina was gone and it would only be him and Ari next, Benny didn't know why... He didn't know why she was gone, he didn't know why he'd been alone and he was so hopelessly lost.  
First it was Tina, but it couldn't be Arizona... it couldn't be her.

"Wake up... wake up..." Benny said weakly as he shook his sister's head, trying not to feel the sting in his eyes... but it was there and the weight of everything he has lost... just came crashing down on him. And Benny broke down, "Not you... please, God, don't take her. Not her..." the man closed his eyes after looking to the ceiling, "You already took Tina! You can't have Arizona!" He shouted, trending with the effort to remain upright.  
And then... He felt her shift in his arms, "Ben...?" Ari's voice trailed off weakly as she raised her head a bit and then laid it on his arm, "I'm here..." He whispered hoarsely, looking down at her and then he felt relief wash over him.

She would be okay.

~  
~

Benny heaved in a large breath before exhaling and glancing down at his fists, the scar that was there...  
Then, he picked up the recorder that was set down in front of him, "Grazie." He said as he took it and put down the correct amount for it, oh, not to mention the tapes he already had. Yes, Benny was more or less turning himself into a spy, but he didn't have cameras and he couldn't move like one. This recorder should do just fine...

Benny had just then walked into the hotel, yeah... He hadn't ever bothered to know it's name, perhaps that could also help him in his search. He just hadn't seen it smart, but now it was and he was an idiot.  
Once the man entered, he happened to look into the office that was off to the side, across the receptionist desk - there was a window that was opened and there was Ettoreo's father, Marcelino was his name. He was on the phone and he looked deep into the conversation, so Benny quickly pulled out the recorder and pressed the play button as he slowly inched closer to the window, the man was talking in Italian. So he couldn't understand everything he said, but he understood some words he was saying.

And while Benny was getting close to the window, Marcelino happened to turn his attention and spot Benny standing there awkwardly like he was lost, luckily, the man was actor enough and managed to pull it off. The Italian man gave the first a slight glare before he walked over to the window and pulled the blinds closed so he couldn't see anything.  
But that didn't mean that Benny couldn't hear it. Benny then inched closer to the window until he was right up to it, then he set the recorder down and turned away from it.  
Perfect timing, no one had been looking. Not even the cameras that were rotating around.

Benny couldn't help his smirk as he shoved his hands into his pockets and then decided to go upstairs and grab his laptop, then he'd come back down and wait until Marcelino left the office to get the recorder back. Upon returning downstairs, Benny walked to one of the sofas and sat down, he took a glance around and looked to the recorder - it was still there, no-one had taken it or moved it.

Good.

After sitting there for a couple moments, just surfing the web... He was actually looking for reports of the Paris accident six years ago... and he wasn't paying attention to Federico wondering over to his father's office and seeing the recorder on the window.  
"Che diavolo?" The man muttered lowly and under his breath, Benjamin almost didn't hear it, but any kind of noise made him raise his head and looked over to where it was supposed to come from, then he saw the bodyguard looking over the recorder as if he hadn't ever seen a device like it before. He was such a lug!

Benny muttered some kind of German curse under his breath before he closed the laptop and out it to the other side of his body, nearly clicking a link to the accident. He wanted to know what others wrote about the accident; what their version was and he could've corrected them if he wanted to. For he couldn't because he could just allow people to think what they wanted, he didn't care what they thought about it.  
He didn't care if they thought that it never happened - but he was there, Arizona was there and they knew what happened. They experienced it first hand.

"Oh! Thank God, you found it." Benny said with fake relief as he walked up to Fredric and took the decoder before he even had a chance to react.  
"You lost your tale recorder?" The man asked, watching Benny with curious eyes. Oh, so he did know what it was, good for him.  
The man, did not voice his annoyance at being questioned, instead, he answered it with a nod, "Yeah - I set it down and went upstairs to get my laptop... And I seem to have forgotten about it. Thanks for finding it." Benny said, turning off the tape after a moment of trying to figure out what button it was supposed to be. At least he was sure he turned it off, "Grazie." And with that, Benny went to get his laptop and then he disappeared upstairs.

Luckily the people here weren't all that smart.  
Benny had, for whatever reason, started to take the stairs - he got a lot more exercise and it allowed him a little bit more room to move around, it also allowed him to go at his own pace. He enjoyed doing that, to rush if he had to, or to take his time if there was nothing else to do.  
He hoped that Arizona would go up to their room, alone, and see the note that he left her - he'd like it if she'd listen to the recorder and translate the words for him. Luckily for Benny, he was able to get the full conversation and happened to accidentally get some of the conversation with him and Frederic. It was so-and-so embarrassing. And now... He was downstairs and wondering in the kitchen, only because he saw Luciano go in here and he wanted to ask the man a few questions that would help.

But only, Benjamin would be sounding like he was just some tourist who heard a local story.  
Ah! And there was the man he wanted to see, who happened to be cutting potatoes up without anyone to disturb him expect for a curious American. Benny slowly advanced to him, hoping that his presents would before he announced, just so he wouldn't startle him.

"Hey, Luciano, is it?"  
The man raised his head once Benny stepped up to him and then gave him a slight smile, "Sì, what can I do for you?" He finished cutting the potatoes and then tossed them into the boiling water, he looked to Benny and then gave him a fuller smile.  
It nearly unsettle Benny, but he didn't let that been seen, "I want to know more about what happened... five months ago... in January." And that's when Luciano's face for dark and the grip on his knife tightened greatly.  
Benjamin realised that was probably the wrong thing to say.

Perhaps rephrasing it would've given him a better outcome, but he wasn't dead yet... the man took a step back, intending to walk away when Luciano stopped him by turning and glaring with a hatred in his eyes, "Where did you hear about that?"  
Shìt, he was in for it now, "Uh... some local woman told it to me." Okay, it was half the truth. He asked and she told, but in this case, she would've told without him asking her.

And after that, Luciano's grip loosened on the huge knife he happened to be holding and he looked relaxed... or relieved for a split second. Then the blonde-haired man set the knife down and shook his head sadly, "I cannot tell you much... today, unfortunately. But, all I can say, right now, is it was a very bad time for the Auditore family. And they had to suffer through a lot."  
Benny wanted to question why he couldn't know more, right now because it was obvious that this man had a lot of answers to Benny's many questions.

"The food is almost done, amico. I suggest you get ready." Luciano said, brightening up as if what they had just started to talk about never happened... his answers would just have to wait.


	6. Chapter 6

Benjamin had been very close to getting the truth from someone... oh, so... damming close and just to sent away by food it was possible that he wouldn't be eating.  
Perhaps just to indulge Luciano, the Auditores and his sister.

He never honestly took himself as a people pleaser - unless the job called for it, then he would do what he had to to get what he needed, usually no matter the cost.  
Anything someone asked of him, he would do - unless it crossed the line. If it happened the cross the line, Benny would get it a different way. A way that no one could imagine... you could have an idea oh what it was like, but you'd have no idea the way he would do it.

Benny walked up the stairs, looking out the windows, at the pictures and he just kept going. He saw how dark it was now and found himself feeling a bit tired.  
He could go twenty-four hours without needing sleep... wait, it was twenty-seven. He was pretty sure he had just broke that damm record. He needed sleep, to sleep on what information he already knew and to find out more in the morning... besides, what makes him think that tomorrow will be any better than yesterday? All he was doing, was making sure this place was safe. For his sister...

Benny sighed softly as he reached his floor, funny how time flies when your not paying attention. And it has been... six years... six years.  
He shouldn't really be thinking about that, it would just get him all riled up again, the man worked his jaw as he pulled the keycard out and unlocked his hotel room. There was a couple of papers on his bed and another one sitting on the desk, he went over to the desk and picked the paper up, it was the translation he requested, the Italian first and then the English translation.

"Thank you, Ari." Benny muttered under his breath as he set the paper down and then put the recorder over it, just to make sure it wouldn't fly away some how. He could say that the things he touched usually disappeared, but that would be a lie...  
The man walked over to his bed and picked up the other papers and then... just stopped - all together. This was a joke, this was some sickjoke by, his sister? She wouldn't do that, she wouldn't do this... she knew that this was over the limit!

`A horrible accident has occurred in the Paris Underground Catacombs. Three tourists who came here for a private tour of them, their guide, Francis Delruda, was supposed to take them on a friendly trip. But that was not what happened.  
Delruda happened to take the three siblings down into the catacombs to sacrifice them to some ancient gods. No one knew what motivated him to do this, family members day he was acting alright before he left(...)

One person was killed; Tina Felocife. Twenty years old, younger twin to Benjamin Felocife. She was rendered immobile by a stab to her spine that paralysed her from the neck down.  
Then her head was smashed in repeatedly with a rock. All while Benjamin sat there and watched.

He and the younger sibling escaped with their lives - Benjamin having a collapsed lung, a torn Achilles tendon and a stab wound in his sternum.  
The younger sibling had all kinds of cuts to her stomach, a few bruised ribs and a broken collar bone.

WHY DID YOU LET HER DIE, BENNY?! SHE WAS YOUR SISTER AND YOU LET HER DIE!!`

"No, no, no!" Benny shouted as he read the last words of the paper, this wasn't right! No! No-one could know this, no one knew this. And on the next page were pictures.  
Of him killing the man, of Tina getting killed... of his sister half alive and him trying to drag her out.

"FÜCK!!" Benny shouted as he threw the papers and then ripped them in a fit of rage. The next thing he did was shove every thing off the desk, then hitting it with his fist and feeling it splinter underneath his hand.  
Benny yelled out a scream of frustration before he collapsed against the wall and sobbed. This wasn't real... no one knew, it wasn't his... fault. He couldn't do anything about that... he couldn't.

Benny whimpered softly for a moment, feeling the pain of missing someone who was supposed to complete him. Tina was gone... And he spent five years convincing himself that it wasn't his fault. What are these next years going to be? Convincing himself that it is his fault?  
That everything that happened, could've been prevented... given he had decided to bring the gun with him? He was so sure that the gun would've helped... And it would've helped a lot.  
Perhaps it would've even save his... sister.

Benjamin took in a few shuddering gasps as he calmed his sobbing, but the shaking, the anger and the guilt wouldn't go away. It just...  
His eyes raised when he head a thump against the wall, then another one and then it started up as a rhythm. He wasn't stupid, it was easy to guess what was happening... but why it was happening, had a different answer.

The man but his lip and then slowly edged over to where the noise was coming from, he had... always wanted a relationship, like this... with someone, but he wanted... more than what he was hearing.  
Benny wanted something deep... emotionally. Someone he could trust with his secrets, someone he could love, someone he could by gifts for and someone who would be there for him.  
Anyone...

But that person was not there, that person would never be here. It... just seemed so impossible with the life he had and the life he made. No-one would want to share it with him, so Benny... supposed he didn't want to share it with anyone else because this was his. And someone else could just - ruin everything that he was, and he could get them killed. Apparently he didn't want to kill anyone else. And now he has gone back to blaming himself for his sister's death...

~

Maybe it was his fault - maybe that's why he was seeing Tina walk around the table. Her grey eyes piercing him and giving him an uncomfortable feeling like she was really there, but that was impossible. Ghosts didn't exist... latest they weren't supposed to.  
Maybe... maybe there was just - hallucinations. It was normal for Benny to see these things when he missed sleep, he always did to keep himself busy. Just to keep himself busy, but unfortunately... here he was seeing his dead sister. When he would only see his parents, or people from his past.

And these people never had anything nice to say. All they did was kick him down and tell him that he's worthless, that he is one day going to kill Arizona because every thing he touch dies.  
Benny actually knew that these hallucinations were reflections on what he thought of himself - he talked to a psychiatric, once, when he had hallucinations after being tired - though he hadn't realised that he was tired that day. But having some random person know what he was thinking and his he thought did not work out for him, he only did it because everyone else was forcing him to. After that, Benny never went back.

But he learned that these hallucinations were reflections of what he thought of himself. All his self doubts would come to him in the people whom have died, because of him... or not.  
And no, he wasn't eating. He wasn't even listening, he was just allowing his eyes to follow Tina around the room, a dead look on his face. Someone (Mama Maria, maybe? Arizona? He didn't remember) questioned his well being and why he was making that face, but he didn't answer. Talking was the easiest way for him to actually say what he thought, without thinking.  
Benny thought before he talked, always. No matter how long it took, he got the words out most of the times. But he wouldn't phrase them right. That was another problem he had...

"I need to be excused for the rest of the night." Benny said lowly to his sister, his eyes feeling heavy as he pushed himself up on his own shaky legs, tomorrow... All he could think about was tomorrow for whatever reason.  
Now... he knew the night was still going, but he couldn't live it up. And the ache of being tired just... hit him, for whatever reason.

Benny hadn't been hungry all day, so he hadn't ate, he had a bottle of water. And that was all, so perhaps that was why...  
Tomorrow... toomarroow.

~

Literally, making it up the stairs was a hassle, Benny had collapsed, twice trying to get up them. Then his own Prince Charming came and swept him off of his feet. Like... literally.  
This man came from nowhere, picked him up and carried him up stairs. All while Benny fought to stay conscious and make sure he wasn't being taken anywhere else.  
He was sure that people didn't normally carry their guests up the stairs, but this was Italy! Anything goes!  
"Your key?" The man asked as Benny rested his head on the man's shoulder and looked at his face, heard his voice but didn't actually hear it or see it. He couldn't register who they were, so it must've been Luciano or Federico. Ettoreo was out because that man did not like him. And it was funny, so funny that the man smiled sleepily and then shook his head, "Pocket." He rasped out, then turned his head to look at the door. The consequences that would appear to him tomorrow... ugh... He was so extremely sure that there was no way he wanted to deal with those.

He didn't exactly know who this man was, but this man was helping him... so supposedly he wouldn't kill him.  
Or he just wanted the other to be comfortable before he killed him.  
What a thought!  
He felt someone's hand in his pocket and then the door opened in front of him, then he was being carried and set down in his bed.  
Oh, and would you look at that; someone was nice enough to take his jeans and shoes off. Oh, and the blanket! How wonderful of them.

"Thanks..." Benny muttered, though he was barely coherent. Then, he drifted off into the darkness as the man shut the door behind himself.


	7. Chapter 7

"I haven't ever seen him that tired in years." Arizona whispered to Ettoreo as she watched her brother get up and attempt to walk back to their hotel room. And he used the stairs instead of the elevator, he'd probably fall asleep in there... so perhaps that was why.  
It was kinda hard to understand her brother and what he thought, he was so odd. But it was in a good way and she actually didn't want him anyway else, she knew that all he wanted to keep his baby sister, and only living family member, safe. And she liked it, but it did get annoying sometimes.

"Hey! Where are you going?" Ettoreo asked someone who was apparently trying to leave, Arizona turned her head to see Luciano getting up and setting his cloth napkin down, "No-one else is going to help him." And that was answer enough for Ettoreo who let go of his friend's bicep, watching as he went over to Benny and picked him up gently.  
Benny allowed him to! Her brother hated it if he was touched by anyone, well, he was afraid of being touched by them, especially by 'strangers'. Though this time, he relaxed into Luciano.

He must be very tired to do that, and perhaps he could have someone else... He honestly could if he would just let someone else in. But he was afraid of that too, Ari's brother had so many fears, and each one he would not admit. Only claiming he disliked it.  
The sibling's eyes connected for a brief moment and there was just a dead look in Benny's eyes. He was worn, physically and mentally... good thing a break would suffice for tomorrow.

Arizona, for some reason was concerned over her brother. She knew that it was natural, but not like this. She was worried for his mental state and he could be saying things that he didn't mean to say, so she had to talk to Luciano after he came down.  
"Thank you, Mama Maria and Marcilo for the food, it was amazing." She said, standing up from the table and then giving a slight smile to the other guests. After that, the girl walked over to the stairs, seeing Luciano coming down, "Hey! Can I talk to you?" She asked him, taking a step back and he followed her, a curious expression in his eyes, "Sì, of course. What is it you need?"  
Ari licked her lips to wet them before biting down gently, "Did... did Benny do or say anything weird to you?" She for her own reasons, didn't like where this was going. Though the blonde haired man hadn't replied.

"Well... after I laid him to bed, he grabbed my hand and asked me to stay, because he didn't want to be alone. And then he said, he was too afraid to let people in.  
"I told him that he needed some sleep and he let go of my hand... falling asleep, I'm not sure that he understood what he was saying..." Luciano told her truthfully, giving the girl a slight smile, as of that'd help.

And wow, Benny wouldn't ever share that information with her... maybe it was just his mind making things up...  
Deep down, Ari knew that wasn't true, "Thanks... for doing that, Luciano. Honestly." The girl struggled out, offering him a smile. That was clearly forced, but Luciano looked right through it and didn't say anything, only gave her a nod.

"What is with all the long faces? Hmm? The night is still young, so are we! How about we go somewhere fun?" Ettoreo suggested as he came up beside Arizona and Luciano, giving them an excited grin because he was, he wanted to do something.  
But his papa had also told him that they were supposed to 'meet' Arizona tonight. So, why not have fun? She looked like a lightweight so he could easily get her drunk and then take her to meet-

"What are the bars here, like?" Arizona asked, interrupting his train of thought, "You have read my mind!" He cried out, snatching her hand and then dragging her along to the kitchen with Luciano trailing behind them, Of course he'd come. Just to make sure Ettoreo wouldn't burn anything down - or get himself arrested.  
"You were wondering what the bars were like?" Arizona had asked him as soon as she got her feet under her and was able to walk beside him without him having to hold her hand.  
"No, but a bar was on my mind. I will show you what it is like." Ettoreo said as he stopped by the back door and then grabbed a set of keys that most-likely belonged to whatever car he owned - Ari had not seen any of his 'cars' which he claimed he had a lot of them.

Ari followed him out into the garage and looked around, it was basically a parking lot with four walls and a roof, and a lot of cars. She spotted Federico's Buick parked the closest and with a red Porsche on the other side, belonging to -  
Ettoreo unlocked his car and then raised his head to look at his two friends, "Come on! While we can!" He motioned for them to hurry up while he got in the passenger seat, Arizona glanced to the hotel where she just came from... if Benny woke, he would be very angry to find out that she was gone. But on the other hand, she was sure he was down-under. So he wouldn't wake up for a long time - and she could finally do what she wanted.

No, she didn't drink, like... at all. A very fruity and not strong drink was for her, she didn't like hard alcohol without something to mask it. But, Ari supposed, for once, she could stop being the 'good-girl' her brother was attempting to keep her as.  
For God's sake, she was twenty-four! She deserved to live her life!  
"I don't drink too often." She warned them as soon as she seated herself in the car and buckled herself up, and here she was, in between two men who she swore she knew for her whole life because they acted like it.

Ettoreo was born in this hotel, his great grandparents owned it, he got himself arrested a few times and most of them were accidents. Luciano was born in Venice, a business trip up there made Ettoreo and Luciano become best friends. Luciano moved in with the Auditores after his mother passed and when he was eighteen, moved out, got his own place and started up as an artist.  
He still lives in his apartment, but is usually always around Ettoreo.

"Oh, well then, Amore; this will be the time of your life!" The dark-haired man said as he gave her a wild grin and then one to his best friend, Arizona didn't doubt that at all.

~

"Alright, alright - here. Try this one." Ettoreo said with a laugh watching Arizona drink all these drinks he was handing her was funny, the faces she made and the noises were what got him.  
"I don't know why all these guys are making me drink, but whatever." She said, chuckling under her breath - reaching to take the drink and then snatching it from the Italian man, downing it quickly and then slamming it down on the bar.

A few cheers went up from behind her and she turned her head to look at the crowd and then tried to locate a tv, they weren't cheering for her, were they?  
"Again!"  
"Again? But we just went." Actually, Arizona didn't mind taking another one, because this was seriously fun. She took the next one that was handed to her and she downed that one; honestly, she had no idea how it came to this. She was first really, really reluctant to try anything out and she was practically glue to Luciano (because Ettoreo had gone to flirt with some women and she wasn't allowed to be over there with him.) and trying to hide from every one because there were many stares from a few men and she wasn't used to it at all, she really disliked people staring at her.

And then Ettoreo happened to come over and hand her a cup of liquid courage and she drank it all down, despite it's rancid taste. She figured it was time to just let go and allow herself to have, despite the lectures were she would receive tomorrow from her brother who would surely find out what she had been up to last night.

Or maybe he wouldn't and every thing would be normal and it would be okay, tonight... it was the night where you just let go. And knew... everything would be okay.

~

"This is her?"  
Ettoreo grunted and shifted Arizona, who did indeed warn them that she was a lightweight, she was practically asleep in his arms. Barely standing, her eyes were half open and she was looking at the men, but Ettoreo was sure she wasn't exactly seeing them.  
"Sì, this is her." He confirmed with a nod, looking to the first man who spoke - big bulky guy, dark eyes and a bald head. The other was a few inches shorter with a smaller build, a bit of stubble on his face and dark blue eye. He remembered that he had to be careful with what he said around these guys, he did kill a group member and nearly kill their leader.

So he had to listen to what they said, "If I could, I'd take her right now." The shorter man as he stalked forward and grabbed her face, turning it one way and then the other, a smirk playing on his face as he slowly trailed his fingers down her neck and close to her cleavage.  
Ettoreo did not like that one bit, and... that was a problem. Because she didn't belong to him, she belonged to the mafia and if he had a problem with them touching this woman...

The rules were strictly set by his mama and papa, do not get close to the guests but make them feel welcome.  
Ettoreo hoped he hadn't broken that rule; but with that thought, he shifted Arizona away from them and kept the possessive look off of his face, then he met their firm gaze with one of his own.  
Arizona groaned from being jostled around a little bit too much, "Look, she's shít-faced and I'd like to get her back to the hotel. She's yours in three days." Okay, and the last words just didn't sit right with him, it made his stomach churn, an acid taste coming to his mouth as he looked at them, waiting for them to give him permission to leave.

The taller one nodded and then turned to leave, "Just make sure you're there." He said in a deep voice, then he turned around and was followed by the shorter man who had a greedy look on his face. Making Ettoreo's stomach drop in dread for the next days.

"He asked about the incident." Luciano said the moment Ettoreo dragged Ari from the room, "Who? Benny? The man who is afraid of everything?" Ettoreo scoffed, he wasn't as worried about Benny as he was Arizona. Benny could handle himself, and plus, they had three more days and there wasn't anything the sibling could do...  
Since when did this feel so wrong? Kidnapping people and then giving them to the mafia so they could have their way with them... so that the Auditores could pay off their debt and keep the hotel, all because of their stupid son who feared for his family's life...  
Perhaps it should've started to feel wrong four months ago. But it didn't and now that this girl was here, he was feeling... that this was wrong.

Everyone warned him against it...  
Wait - no, it was the alcohol that was making him feel buzzed. This wasn't what he truly felt... he knew that, he did.  
Well... if Ettoreo was so sure that this wasn't what he was truly feeling. Then he wouldn't be trying so hard to convince himself...

~

What. A. Fantastic. Sleep.  
For once in his whole life, since... the 'accident'... he had gotten the best sleep in the world... no dreams, just pure darkness, comforting - soft and gentle. It assured him that he, every thing would be alright. And he would do anything to get that feeling back.

He'd probably do anything to get rid of this groggy feeling in his limbs while his eyes blinked open slowly and he was greeted by bright light shining through the window behind him, blinding him for a couple seconds.  
The man slowly raised his hand up and blocked out the brightness for a moment, groaning under his breath at being woken up by an unseen force.

And the moment his eyes adjusted he saw in the bed across from his was his sister and the very man he despised. Tangled in the sheets but it was easy to see that the native had his arm around her waist. And her back pressed against his chest, and boy did they look very cozy together.  
Suddenly, the older sibling was wide awake as he jumped out of bed and stalked over to where the two were sleeping - he grabbed the bottom of the sheets and pulled them right off, very quickly.

Ettoreo proved to be a light sleeper as he quickly shot up and glared at Benny with red eyes, dark circles around them and looked like he got drunk last night. He was still fully clothed, the only thing missing was his shoes. After the Italian and the American had regarded each other and then decided that no harm was done, Ettoreo yawned and then closed his eyes, bringing a hand up to wipe over his face - as if he was trying to get rid of any evidence of him drinking or doing something he shouldn't have been doing.

"Why are you in my room, in my sister's bed with my sister?" Benny asked as he dropped the sheet on the floor and then limped over to the bathroom, pausing for a moment and seeing that he was in his boxers and t-shirt.  
How in the hell had he gotten up here? He couldn't remember a damm thing, other than ripping up a couple pieces of paper and being really upset about something... But Benny could not figure out what it was he was upset over.

It was like everything was a dream, maybe his sister would be able to remember what happened.  
"We got shìt-faced last night, she's such a lightweight and couldn't walk herself. So I helped her to her room, laid her on her bed and then happened to fall asleep with her. We didn't do anything, so you don't have to castrate me." Ettoreo joked lightly as he stretched himself and then looked down at Arizona, besides getting ready to be hungover when she woke - she still looked really peaceful. And it was odd and... heart-sickening to feel this way about her, the dread settling in his gut like a heavy weight he couldn't ignore.

It was just there and it hurt...  
But there was no backing out... was there? I mean, hell... there was Benny. He could help, they could -  
"That's all, huh? You shít-faced my sister?!" Benny asked as he popped his head out of the bathroom and glared at him with all the hate in those wolf-like eyes.  
"Well..." Okay, bad piece of information that older-extremely-crazy-protective brother didn't need to know, there wasn't any going back.  
"Luciano was there, I didn't get as shìt-faced..." Ettoreo trailed off and then gave his guest a sheepish look.

"What? Are we talking about getting drunk?" Arizona asked as she opened her green eyes and then glanced up at the man who was beside her, "Oh... we didn't- I mean, did we..?" Ari swallowed when she saw her brother walk out of the bathroom and gave her a look - and he didn't go on a rant.  
He must've gotten was very goodnight's sleep. Thank the Lord for that!  
Ettroreo smirked to her, "You wish, love." He purred in Italian; Ari could not stop the blush on her face. He might mistake it for her overactive imagination, or he could figure out that she really knew how to speak Italian and understood nearly every word he said.

"No, we did not. But you got really, really drunk last night." Ettoreo said as he got out of bed and made to grab his shoes, "I accidentally fell asleep with you in your bed." Okay, that made a lot more sense now. But the part where she couldn't figure out what happened, or why she couldn't remember it, bothered her. She and Benny both hated forgetting things.  
But last night was a blur after finishing dinner - and she was still alive so she supposed she shouldn't worry about it, no injuries befell her and... yeah.

"Oh!" She suddenly cried out before Ettoreo left the room, but sitting up that fast had unfortunately gave her an awful head rush that made her groan in pain, Ari's hand flew to her head while the other one stretched out to him, "Our tour?" She asked him hopefully, that had suddenly came back to her, the Grand Canal tour on a gondola, something she had always wanted to do.  
And she surly wasn't going to miss it because of a hangover.

Ettoreo turned his head just a bit, his hair having escaped the time and framed around his face, but only one golden eye was visible as he looked at her, "Better get ready, we leave in fifteen."


	8. Chapter 8

"Ooh! Benny! The tour, we have to- uhg!" Arizona yelped out as she attempted to leave the bed quickly - but ended up tripping over herself and falling on the floor with a heavy thunk.  
He would have to get her some aspirin if they were going to be moving around, and being in the sunlight. She would be complaining and if Benjamin was honest with himself, he wanted the both of them to enjoy today.  
There wasn't anything to be worried about, except the conversation that he gathered from Marcelio, that his sister gladly translated for him. She was a help in some ways, but a nuisance in most. Nothing would change his love for his baby sister.

Benny sighed and walked out of the bathroom, over to the curtains and shutting them before she had a chance to compilation about how bright it was, "Alright - how about I extend the time, thirty minutes so you can puke in the toilet then take a shower. I'll go get you some aspirin because you will have a headache and be complaining about how bright it is outside." He said as he walked over to her and then picked her up and off of the floor, his sister groaned and leaned against her older brother, "Sounds like you've been through all of it." She muttered, nearly tripping over her own feet again.

Benny did not reply to her comment, only because it was true. He had been through all of it, for two years. He knew what it was like everyday, all in the name of trying to forget.  
It was a short-term memory loss, it never lasted. He couldn't forget the events that seemed to plague him at night, just not as often anymore.

"And besides, I don't understand why I just can't sleep it off." Arizona said, getting her feet under herself and starting to walk properly... sorta, there is no 'proper' way to do anything.  
"Well, you can; if you want to miss the Grand Canal tour." If she was going to sleep it off, then Benny would cancel it. He did not like going on the water with a man he barely knew (which was or course a lie because he had his background checks). Fine, then... how about a man who could be unpredictable? That sounds just about right.

"Ah! Of course! How could I forget? I need to-" Arizona had started to say as she suddenly shot up right and started forward to the bathroom, but ended up falling to her knees because her legs were a little weak.  
"Ugh! Work you, fückers." She muttered, looking down at the floor and then up to her brother, squinting just a bit even though it was complete darkness. Though they were right next to the bathroom with the light on, Benny liked doing things on the dark. But he liked turning lights on even more.

The two looked at each other for a moment, and it was weird - it was weird because no one was talking or sharing what they were thinking. He actually wasn't thinking about anything else - other than her, he was just... amazed at his different she looked, after six years.  
You'd think you would get a good look at your sister after that... But not really, she was such a beautiful woman and Arizona could have guys falling for; if only Benny would allow it. He wasn't his parents, and no, he never wanted to be. He knew that she would chose a man when she was ready. But that man had to pass through Benjamin.

He would be the one who that man would have to ask to marry his sister, and if that man ever dare hurt her...  
Benny worked his jaw, looking to the clock beside the bed. He saw that they only have about twenty-five more minutes left, so Ari should probably be getting in the shower now.  
"Get up," Benny said after a moment, he held his hand down to her so that he could help her up. And she just sat there for a moment, looking at his hand - thinking things he couldn't hear and small things running in her mind as she saw his hand. Remembering when he'd help her up after a fall, help her up into the hayloft and she remembered her...

Ari's fingers curled a little bit, just for a moment, then her hand reached out slowly and grabbed his. For her... it was now a symbol of trust - she hadn't touched her brother's hand for years. And hell, it was really weird that she did that, that she thought that touching hands was a gesture of trust.  
Maybe it wasn't trust, maybe it was accepting help from him, when all this time she had been trying to prove that she didn't need his help. Ever since Paris, she had been trying to tell him without actually saying it, that she didn't need his help.

Perhaps it was okay to accept it a few times, as long as it was being offered to her; Benny took a step back and pulled Arizona to her feet, putting his free hand on her shoulder and giving her a light smile.  
"Thanks..." she whispered, her voice unnaturally hoarse. Now, this was why she didn't drink. She hated forgetting, she hated the pain and she hated the acid taste that was in her mouth. Signalling that she should probably go lean over the toilet before her dinner made itself known all over her brother and the floor. And she was sure that Benny wouldn't be too fond of that.

~

Do you know what the worst feeling in the world is?  
Benny knows... a few horrible feelings... the first was being afraid - of anything... the second was being angry - so much rage and you didn't know what to do about it...  
The third was being depressed.  
And the fourth was being pressured to talk about your past.

That's how there was a silence in the car, Ettoreo had decided to take his older brother's Buick to drive up to Venice (they were going to spend half a day there since it took two hours and thirty minutes to get there), Benny had been placed upfront with the man and Arizona was in the back, despite both of their wishes. Apparently it would work better if the older sibling was upfront and not back there.  
Benny didn't like it anymore than Arizona; he obviously liked it less because of who he was sitting next to. If his sister knew why he disliked being up here, then she'd probably chaste him for not even attempting to get to know the man. Whom she acts like she had known her whole life and Benny just couldn't deal with that, he doesn't throw his trust away... ever.  
He wouldn't.

There was just too many bad experiences when he did so.  
And then he asked, Ettoreo just had to stick his nose where it didn't belong. And where it didn't belong, was into their past. You would not get a single word from Benny, and all he would do was just slap your nose right out of it.  
"Do you have any other family?" He asked them, a hint of caution to it - the reason was unknown to the siblings. But that was a question, even if so causal, he would not answer. Nor would Benny allow Arizona to answer because he did not need to know.

Even if he spilled his whole life to them for one little piece of information, he would still leave out the parts of the mafia. Benny was sure of that.  
"It is none of your business and if it was, we would tell you." Benny snapped at him, not even looking sorry about it as he glared out the window. As if there was something out there that had made him angry, but with the tone of human s voice, the man obviously did not want to continue and converse with the man who was driving them.  
Who was silently debating what to do about the moody man who didn't want to talk about his family. He could pull over and have a serious talk with Benny that would most likely end with a fist fight; or they could both pout in silence while Ari was left to wonder why boys just couldn't get along with each other.  
He could also just tell him he was sorry and his reason for asking him about his family, all Ettoreo wanted was to give the man a friend before he was... supposedly killed.

But how bad was being betrayed by a friend? Very... And perhaps he could just drop it, though it wouldn't sit right with him or Ari.  
Ettoreo worked his jaw for a moment and clenched the steering wheel, his golden eyes flicking over to Benny for a moment before he sucked in a deep breath, "I'm sorry - I didn't know it was a tough subject for you. I only wanted to... get to know you better, before you left." The man explained, it was the truth... seriously, but except for 'leave' it would be 'were killed'.

And thinking about the alternate saying made his stomach roll in unease, the man kept his eyes on the road when he felt Benny's heavy gaze on him. It was just there and it felt like a weight on him... and it was heavy and there was an emotion called guilt.  
The apology was silently accepted, not a word was spoken and not another word would be spoken until they reached Venice.

For now, it was best to forget why you were here and just enjoy that you were until you weren't.


	9. Chapter 9

"Ari... hey, wake up. Come on, you need to wake up." Benny urged, grabbing his sister's shoulder and shaking her just a bit. He was not leaving her here like Ettoreo suggested, and when he suggested that, it gave him a ten miniature lecture on why they were here in the first place, another ten minutes to lecture him on his attitude towards the Felocifes, then they set a few rules down on what could be asked and what couldn't be asked and Benny had a right to refuse any question, directed at him or his sister.

So he was probably standing here, for twenty five minutes, talking and not letting Ettoreo get a single word in. That was a dìck move, but Benny had to get that off of his chest or he might explode.  
And back onto the topic where he was trying to wake his 'down-under' sister who really enjoyed sleeping; the two of them (Ettoreo and Benny) had sat up front in uncomfortable silence for nearly two hours straight. Two hours and it was another worst feeling in the world.  
Then they had a conversation where Ettoreo was asking little questions (mind you, he talked to him after they had arrived near the Grand Canal.) such as;  
"Do you like feathers?"  
"No."  
"Movies?"  
"No."  
"Beans?"  
"No."  
"Music."  
"No; I'm just going to answer every thing you ask with 'no'." Benny helpfully informed when he was getting tired of being asked questions.  
"Why?!" Ettoreo (nearly) exclaimed (loudly), if it were not for Benny shushing him.  
"Reverse physiology."  
"Wait - so doing the opposite of what one desires. You can't use that for questions."  
"Good thing you know what it is."  
"Hey! Pezzo di merda." Benny didn't tell him that he knew all the Italian curses.

~

"Oh! I didn't do it! I swear!" Arizona yelped out when she woke up, immediately sitting straight in her chair with her eyes wide open.  
Ettoreo had slithered (in comparison to a snake) over to them, looking over Benny's shoulder and being right up in his personal space as he watched Arizona with his golden eyes; "Do you like tacos?" He asked Benny, turning his head to look at the man - and... those eyes were enough to make anyone have a strange feeling, especially on his face. He just didn't like it when Ettoreo was looking at him like that, expecting something...

"Sometimes." Benny said as they both broke their gazes when Arizona shifted and rubbed her eyes, trying to contain a yawn.  
"That's not even an answer." Ettoreo grumbled under his breath as he back away from the siblings and the car, "We're here." Benny said after Ettoreo walked off, his own eyes following him with a slight edge to them - the man turned back to look at his sister, who was giving him a curious look.

"I thought it took two hours to get here?" She then slowly slipped herself out of the car and walked pass Benny, leaving him to close the car door as she always had. The man rolled his eyes before closing it and walking after her, who was following after Ettoreo.  
"It did, you just fell asleep." He reminded her, shifting the weight of the bag he was forced to carry by his sister, they were going on water - it had towels in there that she stole from the hotel. They were, of course going to return them. But Benny did not plan on getting wet, or course he didn't plan on coming it Italy, nor did he plan on coming here.

So... usually what he plans, turns out to be the opposite. Usually, more often than not, so to say.  
Better catch up if he wanted to listen in on the conversation instead of thinking about things that could go wrong - he didn't know why he was the negative one. He didn't want to be the negative one, but he also didn't want to be the positive one. He wanted to be the one that just went with it and didn't try to change anything to their liking. But that would've been Tina, Arizona was the positive one and he was the negative one.

Negative Nancy is what his twin would call him, all the time and he would always (angrily), point out that was a girl's name and he wasn't as negative as most people thought he was. But his mood greatly darkened the moment he lost his parents, and got worse over the years and perhaps hit an all-time low when his twin died and left him to care with their eighteen year old, traumatized sister with no parents to help.

The first years were hard, they really were. He barely made it through, just barely...  
"Oh! You have your own gondola!" Arizona exclaimed when they stopped at a dock, "Sì, my uncle takes care of it for me." Ettoreo said as he jumped down from the deck and landed in the brown, white and red boat. The designs on it were rather nice, he couldn't help but admitting that, but it was on the water! He did not like the water part of this - he was not afraid of it, he just...

Benny watched as Arizona jumped on the gondola beside her new friend, he chuckled and grabbed her hand to steady her, the girl smiled gently to him before taking a step back and turning around to face Benny, "Come on, we can't do this without you."  
"How am I going to help?" Benny asked, still standing on the dock with his knees locked, he wasn't moving until he got a good answer as to why he should go anywhere near large bodies of water. Ari knew with that look on her face, she was practically calling him a mouse without words.  
No, no. If Benny was to be an animal, he'd be a cowardly lion. Unable to figure out how he was going to use his fears with rather than against him, he'd get to it eventually, everyone does.

The younger sibling sighed in irritation, "You will help balance out the weight, and please Benny. How can you leave me to have fun all by myself." Yeah, and then comes the guilt tripping, he hated it when she did that. Benny didn't like the water, but he didn't like leaving Ari alone even more.  
"Fine! Alright, you win." Benny griped just as she started to say something else that he really wasn't interested in listening to what she had to say because she could talk him to death before he even out a foot in the boat - the man glanced down at the water and then to the boat and finally at his sister, who was expectantly waiting for him and it was hard to concentrate when someone was focusing on you so intently, "Take this." He said, pulling the bag from his shoulder and then tossing it to his sister, creating a little bit of distraction from her gaze.

Benjamin then glanced down to the gondola and decided to get in (not like he had a choice), he put one foot down and then got the second one in quickly so he wouldn't fall back and hit the deck behind him, though he did end up allowing his legs to collapse so he fell down in the bottom of the little boat-thing, "Ugh..." He grunted, looking up at Arizona and Ettoreo.  
"Perfect! Now we are off." Ettoreo said as he started to steer it away, hell, Benny didn't know the terms for this gondola.  
All he knew was it floated and he was sitting in it, hoping he wouldn't drown. The American shifted before pushing himself up on one of the cushioned seats, he raised his eyebrows up and then looked over his shoulder at the other seating section, "I'm gonna sit over here." He muttered to no-one at all, shifting so he was on his knees, then he rolled himself over onto the next pair of seats.

Ettoreo snorted when he watched Benny's less-than graceful move over to the next seats, while Ari held in her laugh of amusement.  
"Why is it so big? Oh, and why do you have this?" Benny asked as he raised his head again and then looked over the side of the gondola, seeing the bright blue water before he shrunk back with a disgusted noise. The man turned his head to look at Ettoreo, expecting an answer.  
Ettoreo smirked slightly, "An answer for an answer?"  
Benny was silent for a moment, thinking about his response, yeah... "Fine, as long as it stays within the rules."  
Oh yeah - he hadn't told Ari what he did. She'd ask soon -  
"Rules? What rules?" She asked, sitting down after Ettoreo motioned for her to sit, though the question(s) were momentarily forgotten as they drifted down the canal slowly, man... if Benny had ever said that Italy was not a beautiful place, then he would be lying.

Especially seeing it from a gondola, on the water... it was beautiful and... well, he supposed he could see why his little sister liked this place so much. If not for the architecture, then for the people.  
Yeah, he was found of 'some' of them, Luciano and Mama Maria. He found them to be really nice people, she (Maria) offered him and Arizona some food for the trip. And Luciano gave Arizona the aspirin she needed.  
Remember when Benny said he was a good judge of character? Those people were good... they had good qualities. But not everyone was a perfect angel like they claimed to be...

"He set some rules down to prevent me triggering something that would put you guys in a bad mood." Ettoreo explained at the awe went down a few notches and their attention returned to the questions that Ari had asked them, the girl turned her attention to Benny and just frowned in a disapproving way at what he did. It was for him, those rules were for him and he forbade her from answering the questions - even though most of them she wouldn't exactly mind answering... a few, though she still had her limits.

Benjamin was just looking at her with that neutral expression on his face that said he didn't care what she thought, he really never would because he doesn't need the approval of her.  
All he needed to make sure she was alive and not care for what she actually felt. Only as long as she was still alive.

Or... that was how Arizona translated everything he ever did... He didn't know how to be a best friend, a parent, a brother and a lover all the time. All of that, was forced on him and he was still learning and he still didn't know. No one would teach him, no one could and all he had to do was figure it out for himself. Which was hard - and when it was hard, he'd push through it no matter the cost. Arizona admired that, she really did.

But she wished that he knew when it was time to stop, to breath and to ask for help... Benny was too damm thick to ask for help. Always, he sees it as his weakness, something that will be his downfall because he would have to put his trust in someone.  
And his trust was very, very important to him. As well as his pride and dignity and Benjamin had no idea that... would be his downfall. Everything he treasured would bring him down.  
He just didn't know that yet.

Ari sighed and then turned her gaze from her brother's, going back to looking at the water which he so greatly feared, looking at the building a and half listening to every thing around her.  
"It's as big as it is to accompany my family - it was just built that way." Ettoreo explained to Benny as he continued on down the canal, pausing just a moment to allow that to sink in, then he continued, "This used to belong to my papa, he bought it to take me, mama and Federico on little rides like this whenever we'd visit Venice. My uncle's lives up here, so he takes care of it for me when I'm not up here."  
"So now it's yours." Benny said, looking over the water for a moment and then turning his eyes to the man for a brief moment.

Ettoreo nodded, not wasting his breath on explaining things further, Benny was a smart man and he could figure things out with ease.  
With that being said, the Italian should be wary about what he spoke about around the man - he 'should' pay attention to what he said. But the facts could've slipped his head and Ettoreo was absolutely sure that the man had no idea about the mafia. Pretty sure, but not certain. Today; was the day where they could pretend like nothing bad has happened to them.

Arizona had since moved up beside Ettoreo, sitting beside his legs and taking in the scenery with a look of awe on her face, she loved the way it was here. He could tell that.  
And he could also tell how relaxed she was around him, how she had already put her trust in him... but... he would betray it.

During the night of the masquerade party; he had not told them about that. It was actually tomorrow, lasted until twelve A.M. and then... Ari would be gone. Ettoreo wouldn't ever be able to see her again...  
Why was he thinking like this? All he should do was give them a good few days before they died. That was all he was here to do.

"He's afraid of water." She said from below him, he glanced down and then to her brother and finally back to her, "He won't admit it though..." Arizona muttered softly, her gaze lingering on her brother for a moment before she glanced up at him and into his golden orbs.  
"Water?" Ettoreo asked, once again, he could ask why the other sibling didn't have a more noble fear. But perhaps it wasn't any of his business; after all, the weakest had a plan if not strength, the easier to take you out if you don't know how to plan.  
It was an interesting fear, but perhaps better that you were afraid of the weaker and not the powerful.

"An accident... when we were kids." Arizona said quietly, almost as if she was promising that she'd tell him later. Only because he was curious of why he was afraid of water, and afraid of drowning.  
"Well... on a completely unrelated note; there's going to be a masquerade party - near the hotel. I am going to invite you. And your brother." Ettoreo added to the end quickly, glancing down at her with a slight smile. Hers was even brighter than his and... it was just heartwarming, but heartbreaking at the same time.

"That would be amazing, I'd love to come. And I'll drag my brother along if I have to." She smirked to the back of her brother's head and then glanced up to the Italian man, a fond smiling placing itself on her face once more.

~

"Did he seal the deal?"  
"Affirmative, the brother and the sister will be going to the masquerade. The pick up is twelve A.M." the man replied through the earbud, he raised his head up from the sniper rifle and stared at the three people on the gondola - his eyes turned to the person beside him.

They nodded in unison.


	10. Chapter 10

Benny once more was looking over the side of the gondola, at the water and wondering why he was afraid of the water. He knew what it could do, it couldn't pull you in, it couldn't move on its own-  
It could compress your head the lower you went below its surface, it hid many creatures that were not all that friendly and it was just so strong... with every thing it did. Falling apart and then pulling itself together, fitting whatever form it is destin to.

Maybe he was water... He could fall apart and then pull himself together, he could adapt to different environment. But why would you fear yourself? Why would you fear, what represents you most?  
Benny slowly turned his head and looked at Ari and Ettoreo who were laying side-by-side while in the gondola that they had stopped.

Maybe... Ari was the wind. Just so free... gentle, encouraging. But also forcing him to do things, even if he didn't want to; and when angry... she can conjure up a storm and tear through everything...  
And there was Ettoreo.

The fallen leaves from trees, he wasn't always there. But when he was, she'd pick him up and show him things that he never knew existed. But one day, someone would leave the other... and the wind will be no more.  
When Benny tilted his head to look at his hand again, he saw that his fingers were gently playing in it. Must've been an involuntary thing, but this...

Pushing his hand in, he started to swirl it around, smiling to himself at the patterns it made. He should probably come to terms with himself, what he was... and like it even if others didn't.  
Those who don't mind, matter the most.

Doctor Sues taught him that, it was encouraging him to be... who. He. Was.  
A protector. Fine.  
A teacher. Fine.  
A brother. ...

He just needed to be himself and the sooner he did, was the sooner people would start tolerating it.  
"Benny!" His sister's voice startled him from his thoughts, making him also retract his hand from the water and then turn his head to look at Ari and Ettoreo, "What are you doing?" She asked him, Benny sucked in a breath before he climbed over one of the seats in the gondola to reach the two.

"Thinking." He replied, after sitting his arse down in the bench. He didn't tell them what he was thinking about because they'd call him strange for comparing them to things in this earth that was non-living.  
"Oh no!" Arizona mocked, but she was holding a serious face. Ettoreo was busy looking between the two siblings as if he was trying to figure out what was wrong.

"What? Why is that bad?" Ettoreo asked, looking to Benny's sister and then back to him, then returning his gaze back to his sister.  
"Nothing's ever good when Benny's thinking!"  
"I could bring a mountain down with my thoughts and then crumble a city beneath them." Benny joked lightly, his eyes roaming over and up into the sky where it was blue and there wasn't many clouds. Not many birds or planes... it was weird, usually you see all kinds of that in Denver. New country... remember, of course it is nothing like Denver.

"Well, if your thoughts are that bad." Ettoreo joked as he soon pulled himself to a standing position, stretching himself for a short amount of time before he stopped and looked down at the siblings with a crooked grin. Benjamin moved over to none side of Ari, now closer to Ettoreo than he was before. The man did not seem to notice how close the male sibling was to him and continued to yammer his mouth as if it was nothing.  
"So... you're afraid of water. Most animals can swim when they are infants."  
"Uh, Ettor-" Arizona had tried to warn him when she saw the look on Benjee's face, but it was already too late because that man could move like lightning when he wanted revenge for what was said to him.

"Oh-" Ettoreo did not have time to finish his sentence as he felt something (someone) grab his ankle and then shoved as hard as they could. Throwing him off balance and ultimately making him tip sideways and fall into the water with a splash, water coming up and getting both of the siblings wet.

Soon, Ettoreo resurfaced a few seconds later and his golden eyes were hard and unamused at what he just occurred, thanks to Benjamin Felocife. He was soaking, his hair was completely wet and hanging around his face, sticking to it and... He didn't want to get wet, nor did he want the siblings to be laughing about how he looked like a soaked cat.  
"Oh... wow... look at you, you're all wet!" She exclaimed, leaning over and brushing a few strands of his hair behind his ear. But being wary of his far she was leaning and of what his moves would be. Should he attempt to grab her and drag her in with him.

"I can also get cats wet and angry." Benny said as he looked over his sister's shoulder to see Ettoreo flip him off with an annoyed face.  
"That is a very bad quality to have; especially when you are messing with a fierce panther." The Italian man said, slipping the hair out of his face, but it didn't work so he needed you having to go back under and fix it that way.

The American was laughing as him, sarcastically, "You aren't a panther. You might think you are, but you aren't."  
Arizona moved back to give Benny room to lean over the side of the gondola to be closer to the drenched man, Benny was still a safe distance away so Ettoreo couldn't reach him and get revenge by pulling him inside the watery grave which Benny hated so.

"Fine, I will be the tiger." Ettoreo said, just treading in the water silently and staring at Benny with golden eyes while the man turned the look with chilling grey and green eyes that always seemed to have an edge, a challenge to them. And he wouldn't hesitate to hurt anyone who tried to challenge his authority... either this man was a wolf, or a cowardly lion. Which ever one, both were great. Well, the animals were, but this man surly was not. He was a good man, but he just didn't appeal to the soaked one's good side for whatever reason.

"No, not even close... try... a Persian cat." Benny said Sith another grin, leaning bask when Ettoreo slapped the top of the water in a poor attempt to get the older sibling wet.  
And it was another way for the Italian to get rid of frustration that could've been caused by one or more of the siblings.

Just one of them actually, the second one... she was bad. No, she wasn't bad at all. And he could find himself wanting to stay with her. Learn from her and see the world with her, he was sure she'd do that with him. She looked like a woman who would do that... show people the world who really needed it.

Ettoreo blinked the moment he realised he was staring at Arizona, and they were both noticing it.  
"Help me back up?" He asked hopefully, swimming over to the side of the gondola and sticking his hand up for help. He did want help, but with the look that Benjamin was giving him... he obviously didn't believe the Italian.  
Ari rolled her eyes at the men and then nudged Benny over, taking an old of Ettoreo's hand, then pulling him up into the the gondola once more.

"Grazie." He said as he flopped over like a fish, narrowly missing how Benny jumped over to the other side of the boat. Ari leaned back and watched the man with a funny smile on her face, "Better get dried off." Then she offered him a towel (that was from the hotel), so that he could dry himself. She was such a thoughtful person while Benny was all like; every man for themselves. So lovely of him.

Ettoreo took it gently from her hands, a soft smile on his face, "Thank you, very much." And to him, it was a really special moment. And there was no reason as to why it was so special. It just was.

Something he hadn't... felt before was actually tugging at him and he leaned himself forward, not even caring if her older brother was watching them. His eyes were slowly slipping closed, but before they closed, he saw a look of surprise on Ari's face before she too was edging closer to him. A thrill in her chest as she thought about... yesterday... where Benny was seriously disapproving of Ettoreo. But she was claiming he was good, the only reason why she was doing that... was because she hoped so bad that he was the good guy she thought he was.

~

He was just laying here... for no reason, there wasn't a reason... actually. He was just lying here just to do it. He was looking at the sky and thinking about how big this world was.  
He heard Ari and Ettoreo talking, then it got deathly quiet and he knew he should probably go check on what they were doing, but Benny couldn't force himself to move... his limbs just felt heavy and watching the sky seemed to be a good idea. He didn't know why he was suddenly feeling tired, weak... limp. It happens sometimes. There wasn't much he could do about it.

His eyes then trailed over to where the buildings were and he was just looking at the roof until...  
He saw the rifle that was pointed at him.

Benny quickly shot up straight, immediately getting on his knees as he observed the men, shìt.  
Shìt... oh no, no, no. It was the... men.  
Not just some random men, the men that he has seen before... the ones... a day ago, near the fücking ATM! They had a gun...

"Ari-"  
"Va via! Non abbiamo bisogno di voi qui!" Someone shouted out, making all three of the people in the gondola jump, and while Benjamin didn't see how close his sister and their guide was, the two of them jumped away and Ettoreo almost fell in the water once again. If it weren't for Arizona, he would be even more wet! Benny nearly cried out his surprise as he turned his eyes in the direction to see a well built man, dark brown hair and he was waving away some pigeons.  
He had the build of a bear and wow... He was frightening, Benny swallowed thickly and raised his head to where the men used to be and he found that they were not there anymore.

Perhaps they split when they heard the man yell.  
Even Benny wanted to jump over board and sink himself because of the fear that came with seeing the man.  
"Ettoreo! There you are, I was wondering who took the gondola!" The man cried out, raising his hand up to leave at their guide who supposedly knew this man.

"Uncle Samuele?" Ettoreo asked as he shifted just some bit and then turned himself fully to stare at the man.


	11. Chapter 11

"There's your uncle." Ari said stupidly, of course it was his uncle. After saying it and after they conversed in Italian for awhile... yeah, that was Ettoreo's uncle - and he was a huge man.  
Not as in fat, he was very tall, hairy and buff. With a big(ish) bushy beard. You know, Benny was creative when he wasn't supposed to act like a detective. This man reminded him of a Viking, only he was Italian (Christopher Columbus).

"Come, bring your friend's inside! I will point you in the direction of an amazing restaurant. Bring her back to the dock, I will meet you there." The man said to Ettoreo before giving an over excited wave to the siblings on the gondola, Benny did not return it, but Arizona did - just as excited as he was.  
She was such a spaz.

Once they turned around and started to head back to the docks, Benny glanced to Ettoreo for a long moment, "I didn't know you had an uncle."  
"Of course, none of us told you." Ettoreo said, meaning it as a joke, but it didn't really come out that way. Sounded a bit more... edgy and slightly nervous. Something you had to train yourself in, or else you'd miss it completely. He was a trained detective, there wasn't anything that he couldn't figure out... well, most things Benny could figure out. The ones where he couldn't figure out, no-one else could.

The man worked his jaw after a moment and then leaned back, looking up to the rooftops once more and not seeing the gunmen, a very, very odd feeling settled in his stomach as he reviewed that memory, over and over... the gun was pointed at him, if it was pointed at him, then they want to kill him. There is a forty-five percent chance that they wanted to look at him through a scope that happened to be attached to a gun.  
There was a ninety percent chance that those men, were the men he saw from the ATM. Comparing both people, he could see the similarities, but it was from different angles...

There is also a thirty-nine percent chance that Benny didn't see the thing they were holding and mistaken it for a gun.  
That was actually what he was trained to look for as well, things that were out of place, that shouldn't be there. Just to sum it all up, Benny was pretty sure it was those men, they were holding a gun and he was certain it was pointed at him, loaded and ready to kill.  
He honestly didn't know if the gun was locked-and-loaded, ready to kill if needed. It was just a guess, but by the looks on the shorter one's face... He looked as if he was out for blood.

And now Benny had a reason to be worried, if there was one gun pointed at him, then there should be many guns pointed at him. He knew how it worked, but he didn't know why. Why is always the question and it stays until you get the right answer, the right answer could be /anything/. So you can't get it right until told what it is.

The person who asks 'why?' all never truly know why. Not until the answer is explained to them, and that would take forever.  
So Benny wasn't going to ask why and wait for the answer... he was going to find out why.

Who would know about what he did? No-one, they couldn't do background checks on the two siblings that were real, because they had fake ones set up, just in case anyone attempted to hurt them or find out who they really were.  
Someone could've hired hitmen to kill him, but as far as he could tell he was still standing. And the station back in Denver took care of all his tracks, destroying any evidence of the real life he lives.

And the last possibility... the mafia was coming after the Auditores... they weren't really gone. And all they wanted to do was place the blame on the family so that their world would go to hell...  
And they would be blamed for the deaths of many.

Dark much? If the mafia still existed, then there would be traces of it. No one was good enough to cover their entire life.  
Not even Benny. Not even him.  
There was no proof that the mafia still existed, and yet it was still a possibility. It shouldn't be one that was taken extremely serious like the others.

"Ciao!" The uncle called as they neared the docks once more, Benny raised his head and glanced to the man, he didn't know time had passed that quickly. Or his thoughts were slower than he assumed. The man didn't dwell on that problem, instead, he stood up slowly and waited until he was close enough to the docks - then he jumped off of the gondola and he was back on dry land, though there was a slight shake in legs as he regained his balance.

So he didn't have 'sea-legs', who cares. He would not let that happen again, he wasn't ever going on the sea, a lake, a canal... a river even. He would not be going near water, on it, or in it - for an extremely long time, this nearly pushed him over his limits, though it barely seemed like that.  
Benny tilted his head up just a bit so he could glance up at the rooftops, but it was the afternoon, so the sun was kinda shining in his eyes, therefore, there wasn't much he could see. Benny then realised that he would very much enjoy being inside right now where he had more cover than being out here...

And the reason why he was feel panicky? He did have an overactive imagination.  
It could be or it also couldn't.  
Getting inside would just make Benny feel better... about being... out.  
"Well, you're on land now, feel better?" Ari asked as she reached her hand up to her brother, wanting him to help her up. Benjamin grabbed his sister's hand and helped her up on the dock, then backing up and letting go once she was back on dry land.

"Sorta." Was Benny's reply, how about 'not really'? Being outside just... made him feel uneasy and to not cause Arizona any panic, he wouldn't be telling her what he saw, only so she could go tell Ettoreo.  
He wasn't afraid of being made fun of, it was other reasons. His own reasons.

Ah, his sister didn't even listen for his reply, so she won't question him. She was too busy helping Ettoreo out of the gondola. Better to have her ignore him than asking him questions.  
"This is, ah, my uncle Sam." Ettoreo said as he too was finally on land, he walked over to the man who was claimed to be the uncle, his name being a shortened version of his real one - which Benny couldn't pronounce to save his life. Most of the things in Italy he just couldn't pronounce, he can speak German and they have weird letters mashed together, he didn't know why he couldn't pronounce a simple Italian word.

Ciao - for example. It is pronounced 'chow' while seeing it in written form, you this is 'see-eye-o' or something like that. But apparently that wasn't how it worked. Sometimes German words didn't work that way, but this was more confusing. Things are only confusing when you don't understand them, and what you don't understand can hurt you.

Very. Very. Badly.

"These are my guests, Benjamin and Arizona." Ari shook the big man's eagerly, but Benny kept his hands to his side and only looked at the hand that was presented at him to shake, "You expect me to sniff it?" He said in a dead voice, though he was being sarcastic underneath. His sister gave him a horrified look at his manners, she shouldn't have expected him to be nice, she shouldn't really expect anything of him unless she asked for it.

The big man looked a bit offended at his response before he smirked, raising his hand, palm up this time, "You can if you want." Okay... Benny was honestly not expecting someone to match his sarcasm. It was an interesting twist to his crazy life, that one which seemed to repeat itself over with the same motions that he could easily fall into without even thinking about it.  
Well, he could outwit this man. "Nah, I don't need to smell you hand to know what you smell like." And Benny couldn't hold his dead face any longer, soon he was smiling at Ettoreo's uncle, then the big man laughed with the sense of humor that this man had.

"You, amico mio, have a wonderful sense of humor." He said then patting Ettoreo on the shoulder as if congratulating him on the person he found. Which would be odd, but Benny's mind immediately showed him that it was that way   
"Thanks, you have a pretty strong sense yourself." Benny said, taking a glance to Arizona as she slipped over to stand beside him, looking at the other two men. And that's when he returned his attention to them.

That was also when Arizona slapped him on the back of the head for being a jerk at first, Benny let that happen. He could've caught it... if he was paying attention to what she was doing.  
He frowned and then turned his attention to his sister, sending her a raging glare of all the anger he could muster up, "That was rude." She told him, glancing down to the dock for a moment before she raised her head and glared at Benny, okay... since when does that make her angry? Since when did she start caring about how he treated others?  
"I'm a germaphobe... remember?" And that was her fault, she knew it was she sent him another glare that said 'kill yourself - no one likes you', he ignored it because he knew she didn't mean it, whoever she said anything rude like that, she never means it.

She knows he knows it.

~

"Well now, standing around isn't any fun! How about I take you all back to my shop and then you can go get some lunch." He, Sam, said to Ettoreo and the Felocife siblings.  
Benny didn't do anything, just watched for the other's moves.  
"Sì, that sounds fine." Ettoreo said with a nod, pulling away from his uncle and nudging Ari and her brother to the car that they happened to come in. That would apparently take them back to Sam's place.

Benny followed behind Ettoreo and Ari, Sam was behind him... And Benny did not like people behind behind them where he couldn't see them, so of course his head was turned just a tad, to listen where the man was.  
All of them were silent as the siblings got into the car and Ettoreo went to talk to his uncle, promising that he'd be right back after he was finished talking with his uncle.

Benny's eyes followed them for a brief moment, and then he was looking to something else. He couldn't hear what they were talking about because their voice was low and they were speaking in Italian.  
He hoped to God there was nothing to worry about.


	12. Chapter 12

"Did you know he had an uncle?"  
"I did not know he had an uncle - I didn't know that the uncle would show up, but when I first ran the back ground check."  
"Oh." Ari said as she switched to English once more, glancing up at Ettoreo as he walked back to the car, a unsettled (or nervous look on his face) and Ari had to wonder why. Maybe there was something wrong with his aunt (if you had an uncle then you had to have an aunt), maybe she was sick...

That would be awful... since the gondola tour, just laying beside the Italian man and listening to him talk in his language and then going back to english... there was just something about him that she seemed attracted to. I mean, it wasn't like she was going to get married to him and ride off into the sunset with him.  
It was more of a...  
Gentle attraction. There was just something she liked about him that made her want him to be her best friend. All while keeping the possibility of something more, open. Ari knew how much her brother disagreed and disapproved of Ettoreo and perhaps even his family.

Her brother was an odd person, but she didn't... care. What he feared, how he acted... at least most of the time.  
Sure it was annoying when he was always trying to protect her, but that was just what brothers do and you couldn't change that. They just wanted to look out for their sisters, she would rather be treated like a person instead of a woman.

Ari knew how to handle herself, she knew how to look out for herself and she wanted to say that she didn't need Benjamin with her. But they were living in the same house, spending the same money... if it was up to the younger sibling, she'd live on her own, make a living and perhaps even get a family. She had friends, real ones. Those that would be there for her; Benny knew she did and he knew that she was ready to carry herself.  
He just didn't want to let go, he didn't know how to and he was afraid of doing so. She was practically the only person he had in his life, and she didn't want him to be alone, she didn't want him to drive himself insane and she didn't want him to...

Arizona wanted to spread her wing and fly off on her own, but she didn't want Benny with her all the time. Though she still wanted to be apart of his life. She couldn't force her brother to make friends because he had trust issues, with everything. She couldn't change him; even if it was for the better. She would just be dumping her problem onto someone else if she asked someone to be his friend.

"Vam nuzhen novyy chelovek v vashey zhizni." She muttered out in Russian, which nobody in this car understood. And it was a good thing, because it was true. But it was also directed at her brother.  
Saying that he needed someone else in his life, someone that wasn't her because he needed to know that he can't protect everyone. And that would usually be met with 'I will die trying, then'. Ugh...

She hated people who were so stubborn. And out of frustration, she reached forward and pinched her brother on the back of the neck, a frustrated groan coming from her mouth as she did so.  
"Hey- ow!" Benny yelped as he turned in his seat and glared at his sister, then he reached back and slapped her on the knee, acting like the child everyone thought him to be, but what she did to him was seriously uncalled for and she knew it! You just don't go around, pinching people because you want to, or because they are annoying the hell out of you.

Benny was positively sure that he didn't do anything to annoy her! His Japanese was spot-on, he didn't say anything... maybe it was more punishment for what he did earlier with Ettoreo's uncle?  
Seriously? The bear didn't seem to mind it, in fact he seemed happy to laugh about something, his sister didn't know anything. She hadn't lived as long as he did... which he was just two years older than her...

The door opened to the drivers side and Ettoreo got in, a strange look on his face, like he was worried. He was very shaken up for whatever reason, his hands were shaking, badly.  
As he pulled the keys out, he fumbled with them for awhile, trying to find the right one and also trying to stop his hands from shaking. But it wasn't working, the keys rattled together as he attempted to put the key in the ignition.

Benjamin had not ever seen someone shaken up like this, this bad... He hadn't even been that bad, six years ago. And maybe there was a hint of something inside of him, something that reminded he was still human and he could still care for someone that wasn't his sister.  
The man reached over to Ettoreo and grabbed his hand with his own, steadying it. He felt the man tense under him, but the shaking stopped for a moment and Benny managed to get them keys from him.

It was odd that he felt concern for this man, it wasn't a feeling he felt around others, but perhaps he was sparing just a little bit to their guide. The man who used to be holding the key, sniffed and looked down at his hand that Benny was still holding, there was a moment of silence, no one said anything and Ettoreo was just waiting for someone to ask him something.  
The first thing he happened to notice was how warm the American's hand was, then how thick his fingers were and how soft the skin was. Not at all rough, well, except for a couple of scars that were thick and long.

They had a story behind them, and he was curious about it but he wouldn't ask. It was against the rules to ask.  
"What's wrong?" Benny rasped out, his voice close to a whisper and it was gentle, more than Ettoreo ever thought his man was capable of. Maybe he was concerned with the shake in his hands, or maybe he just wanted to make sure that they'd get there safely without their guide crashing them into a building because he couldn't see straight...

And he couldn't tell them the truth, no... he couldn't, he wouldn't.  
"My aunt... she's... dead. Has been for two weeks and I wasn't told, every one else knew. Her name was Bianca." He added in a whisper, not allowing his eyes to meet anyone. Not allowing himself to raise his head, not allowing Benny to let go of his head. Ettoreo refused to show his tears; he thought that he wouldn't tell then the truth, he thought he would've responded with 'nothing' - he thought he would've taken the keys back and driven on...

But that wasn't what happen, he told them that his aunt was dead. The woman who he loved like his own mother.  
Maybe even more than his mother, she was his everything. She took care of him when he was twelve, all the way until he was fifteen and she let him stay with her whenever he needed her.

But he needed her now! And she wasn't here... she wasn't here and he was alone; there was no-one who knew him better, no-one at all.  
"She's gone... and I need her back." Ettoreo said to Benny, his voice cracking just a little bit, the tears falling down slowly. And he didn't know why he was telling Benjamin this, it wasn't like this man cared. Certainly if he didn't care, he wouldn't be holding his hand, still doing it and looking at him with concern in his eyes.

Maybe he cared, just for the information at least. It didn't matter why he cared, at least Ettoreo was able to spill his problems. It was supposed to help, and it did... just a little bit, he was still feeling... upset, betrayed and... just worn, already - he just wanted to lie down and cry his eyes out.  
He lost his mother, a best friend and a guide. Someone he trusted with his life...

"I'll drive, unless you want to go back..?" Benny asked, tilting his head just a bit, his eyes quickly shooting to Arizona (who looked so upset over what she had just learned, nearly as much as Ettoreo was), they both shared a look of sympathy before Benny's attention was back on the Italian man, waiting for his response.  
"W-we can go... I'll give you the instructions." The man said weakly, Benny almost voiced his option about going back, only so the man could recover from the shock of realising that a particularly close family member had died and he had not been told. That would be something really hard to cope with; even though Benny hadn't exactly experienced the feeling, he could have a good guess on what it might feel like.

Ettoreo unbuckled himself from the seat and hesitantly pull his hand away from Benny's, which was still shaking. He left the keys with the man though, figuring he knew how to work a car.  
The brother and his sister shared a look before the male was unbuckling himself and getting out of the car so they could switch spots.

He didn't know why, he honestly didn't. Maybe he did, he knew the feeling of someone close to you dying, it left a giant bullet wound in your heart and while you tried to pick the fragments out by yourself, you still miss a few. And you can only have someone else pick them out and sow your heart back together... it wasn't as easy as it seemed and not just anyone can pick them out, put your heart back together. If has to be someone who will do an amazing job, who will be there through the healing process.  
Even though it will be long and hard and full of pain, but in the end, you will feel better.

Though the memories will never be gone and a scar will be left in its wake... it will be better, yes... it would be better.  
He knew, he had three scars. All of them were from his family, all of them had been healed by his sister.

Benny gingerly patted Ettoreo on his shoulder when he passed, hearing a light sniff coming from him. Yeah... it hurt, a lot to know someone else was in pain. But it was worse to be in pain.  
The first sighed as he slid into the seat and buckled himself, Ettoreo was soon beside him. And also avoiding eye contact, maybe he was ashamed of how he felt... But there was no reason to. It happened to every one.

"Here..." Ettoreo said weakly as he passed him a GPS that had every thing ready to go. That was rather convenient, as if they had been planning to go to Uncle Sam's, or it could've been a force of habit from when he went to go see his aunt. You'd think he'd memorize it by now...

He didn't say what he thought, he just took the device and pressed the button to get it to go.  
Then he started to drive.

~

"You guys go in... I'll catch up." Ettoreo told them as the two started to leave the car, he wasn't moving. Not yet, "I need to move the car in the back." Ettoreo explained as Benny paused and started to ask why they should leave him in the car to dwell on his thoughts.  
"I can-"  
"It's fine, you've been a help to me, but I can do this." The Italian said, cutting off Benny before he could speak; it could've been that he was afraid of the man leaving him and his sister behind for whatever reason he could think of, but that wasn't what was going to happen.  
For once, this man just had to put his trust in someone.

He then got out of the passenger seat and moved himself over to the driver's side and closed the door, keeping his eyes away from Benny and Arizona as he started the car up once more, his golden eyes turned just a bit to glance at them and he gave a soft smile to (hopefully) reassure them. Then he was driving off once more.

It was hard to drive, even a short distance, only to make sure you would be alone when you let out all of your emotions.  
It would be better if he was alone. It was hard to control them as they drove here, which was only six minutes away. Even harder to talk, hard to put on a fake smile... but now...

Ettoreo stopped the car and slowly let go of the steering wheel that he head a death grip on, he felt as if his head was spinning. He felt as if he couldn't control himself, but he was... he was slowly losing the control he had on himself.  
And when he finally lost the control, when his emotions just broke through... he screamed... and he felt everything.

He screamed, his golden eyes closed and his fists beating against the roof. He couldn't stop himself, no one could stop Ettoreo from the pain he felt and the way he was trying to get it away...  
It would never go away.

~~~~

Benjamin watched as Ettoreo drove the car around to the back for a brief moment, then he was following after Arizona.  
Into the shop that said something, making his sister smirk, but he couldn't read it. He didn't know what this shop was, not until he was inside.

And once he was, he realised that this place might be the most helpful place in the world.


	13. Chapter 13

A weapons shop. It was a weapons shop, swords, guns, knives, sniper rifles, suppressors, machetes... oh, wow... they had all of it. Including some weapons he had seen before, but not nearly enough.  
This, right here - was Benny candy store. And though you might not see it in him, he really liked weapons... like, a lot. Don't tell anyone; but he had more weapons than a few guns and kitchen knives.

He had guns, hand held ones, hidden around his whole house, in case of an emergency. And he had a locked room, filled with the rest of his weapons. Ranging from all kinds of things, but he rarely used them because usually his sister would be bothering him about it.  
She wasn't anti-weapons per-se, she was just uncomfortable around them. But she still knew how to use one in case.  
They all to self-defense classes, Arizona never stuck around because she didn't have the stomach for that stuff. All she knew was the basics, that wasn't nearly enough, though she did know a few techniques that could put someone to the ground, dead or not.

His sister was a perfect blend of a 'tom-girl' and a 'girly-girl'. She was just right in the middle and one day she could be leaning to the tom-boy side of her, then the next she could be aiming for the girly-girl side.  
Sometimes it was confusing when someone switched around so much, he could deal if it was one person. Someone else? He could not handle that.

"Whoa." He murmured under his breath as he looked in the glace casings of knives, Benny took a quickly glance over to his sister and watched as she handled a sword that was given to her (by one of the other workers), "Can I try it out?" She asked, not looking at anyone in particular but the question was direction at her brother. He gave a slight nod to her before she and the man were going off to what Benny assumed to be the training area.

Having all these weapons, wouldn't people want to check them out?

She had a sword, she could purposely hurt the guy if he tried to touch her in the way she didn't want to be touched, he knew his sister was like that for a fact. He saw it happen once, but before he could step in, she had already kicked him in the crotch then kneed him in the face when he was bent over in pain - then she delivered a kick to his stomach area and spat some 'not-nice' words in Russian to the man.

Later, Benny learned that he tried to 'grab' her and then pull her close to his body. She managed to pull herself away and looked as if she was going to run away, then she kicked him.  
The three had all gotten kicked out. It almost ended in a fight between Benny and the man's friends.  
It ended with someone else having a broken nose and someone else had a kicked crotch. His sister had decided to jump in because no-one can hurt her brother other than her, and she could kick hard.  
Though when she was fighting, she looked like she had been holding back. Tremendously.

And nearly every night, two years after the accident, she had started going to work out... she'd come back very tired and exhausted, so she'd sleep. And when Benny wanted to come with her one time, she told him no.  
That there was too many girls there and he wouldn't be able to work out and he'd just be standing there. Or working something 'else' out.

She was such a pèrvert sometimes.  
And only on the weekends she wouldn't go 'work out' sometimes on Wednesdays as well. When they got back to Denver, he was going to find out what that place really was. Because he didn't actually believe her. Since when has he?

Many times he should've stopped believing her, but he never did. For whatever reason... he must just... trust her a lot.  
With his life and it isn't Ari who puts him in danger, it's just the people around them. It's never hurt unless she actually takes a knife to his throat, or a gun to his head. It isn't her fault that things happen. And had never, ever blamed her for anything - he certainly wouldn't now.

"Like what you see?" An Italian accent asked, interrupting the man from his thoughts. Benny raised his head up and looked at Ettoreo's uncle, who lost his wife two weeks ago and seemed fine over it.  
Maybe he knew it was coming, maybe the woman had been sick before she died. He wouldn't know because he wasn't told how 'Bianca' died, he actually thought he wouldn't want to know, just in case it wasn't of natural causes.

"Uh, yeah. You have a nice collection here - I've always liked weapons, my father was a weapons expert..." Benny said as a he glanced to the knives once more, then he looked back to 'Sam', giving him a slight smile, but it wasn't so true because just thinking about his father, mentioning him and what he used to do... it was something Benny didn't have the stomach for.

"Ah, sounds interest. Your weapon of choice?" Sam asked when Benny stood up, and this man was about a foot higher than him.  
Defiantly someone you'd want on your side, not against you. And if he owned and was selling all of these weapons, surely he knew how to handle all of them with ease. And it he did, this man would be very, very hard to beat.

Benny was admitting that, but he wasn't doing so out-loud at least not until someone inquired him about it.  
Which no-one would, the smaller man swallowed and then glanced at the weapons, he wasn't going to say that he knew how to use many weapons. He was just going to tell him the ones he actually used. But he only used his gun once, and it was to shoot someone in the foot because they weren't listening to him.  
And because everyone believed he was bluffing. In the end, they realised he wasn't, perhaps it was too late for someone.

"Nine millimeter glock." Benny replied, shrugging just a bit as if it wasn't something he was used to, "I've only gone target practicing a couple times." Which was too a lie, but he'd be lying if he said he wasn't a good liar. He had gone shooting, way more than that and it wasn't just on targets that wouldn't run off.  
The second time he shot a person was on purpose. One of his rather good assets were trying on some new protective vests, and this one man was wondering if they worked and Benny happened to see a gun that was sitting on the table, he grabbed the gun and shot the man in the chest twice.

Of course that asset was upset while the others were laughing at him, and all Benny said, "You wanted to see if it worked."  
And no, they didn't stop being assets. Though that one - the one he shot, that man took his revenge with dumping cold water over Benny and then shoving him on a frozen lake. But it was near the middle of December. So it wasn't quite frozen.

The ice broke under his feet because he was too frightened to move, he fell in the freezing water and nearly frowned and yes, he was scared and angry out of his mind... But he did not do a thing about it, he was pretty untrusting of them and after his sister visited him in the hospital and he told her what happened, you should've seen the rage on her face. He knew that he would never see his sister that angry ever again.

After that, his assets happened to just stop being his assets, they quit - had all evidence of him and his sister erased... Benny wasn't stupid, no he was not. He knew that it was his sister who forced them, she threatened them and she might've taken a gun with her to make sure that they stayed away from her brother. To make sure they knew she wasn't lying about them touching her brother again...

He honestly couldn't ever had a better sister.

~

"A glock? Ah, alright. Here, follow me." Sam said as he turned around and then started off, going to the back where Ari had gone to, he took a glance around before following after the heavily built man to the back, and Benny was right - there was a gun range back here, a few private room with traditional targets set up for shooting arrows or throwing stars.  
Then there was a padded area for fist fighting or knife training, and there was a dummy area where Ari was, and she was using a sword against the man who had bright her back.

And might the brother say, she was rather skilled at it. And for a moment, she caught his eyes and made her opponent pause, she gave her brother a brief smile and then her attention was turning back to her opponent as they continued fighting with the dull swords.  
And with the way his sister handled the sword, she must've done it before. Or it was a wild case of beginners luck. And of course, there was no way Benny believed that... so there might be a few things he had to inquire his sister on. Hopefully she didn't live a secret life behind his back. Now wouldn't that just be tragic?

A life that didn't include him. Where she was free to do what she wanted and he wasn't breathing down her neck to make sure she was okay...  
The fact that she would have to do it securely made his heart sink in sadness, because she thought so little of him being able to let go and allow her to do the things she wanted; if she really did want that, then she'd have to talk to him about it.

There was no way Benny could read her mind, and he could let go. It was hard to, but he could. And he did it all the time.  
With everything...

~

Benny sighed under his breath, softly so that no one would he hear his distress. Sam then pushed a gun into his hand, his favorite one. It was black and it fit right in his hand, it had a heavy weight to it and it was cold in his warm palm from the Italian sun.  
It felt good to hold the dangerous weapon, but it wasn't loaded, was it?

And when the man glanced to 'Uncle Sam' with a question in his eyes, it was like the bear read his mind, "Blanks, go-on down to aisle three and start practicing." And then the bear handed Benny a couple boxes of the ammunition he was talking about, the man took what he was given and did as he was told, feeling headphones being placed around his neck and then a pair of 'goggles' being set on top of the ammunition.

The one with the gun, stopped at the aisle that was instructed, he put on the headphones and then the goggles on. Benny checked the magazine, the safe mode and then aimed at the paper target. Headshots and then chest shots...

And before Benny could pull the trigger, Ettoreo came up to his uncle and grabbed him by the shirt and held onto it tightly, channelling the angry he had for what happened to his aunt, all he did was come up to his nephew and told him that his aunt died, has been dead for two weeks and how they decided it was best not to tell him.  
But there was no details, she wasn't sick, she didn't drive and she knew how to handle herself as best she could.

"Tell me, how did Bianca die?" He asked in a low voice, his golden eyes fierce and angry. She had always allowed him to call her by her first name, because she believed that 'aunt' made her seem old...  
But she wanted a friend, not a son. Even though he still acted like one, and even though she couldn't have a son of her own... or any children. She loved him as if she had brought him into the world herself.

"Ettoreo, we should talk alone." He uncle said after noticing that Benny was waiting for them to finish talking so he could start firing off the rounds.  
The young man huffed under his breath, but didn't disagree. Sam nudged him off in the direction off his office, then gave to 'ok' sign to Benny, so he could start shooting as he pleased.

Then he walked after his young nephew, dreading what he'd have to tell him because if he didn't tell him the truth, then it could end very badly. And now, as the noises from the gun, which was actually filled with real ammunition, rang out behind them, he played them no mind.

Instead, he entered the office and closed it behind himself. And then he just said it. Because there was no way he could sugar coat it and make sure Ettoreo wouldn't have a fit over it. And if it didn't kill him every time he thought of Bianca, of what he could've done that he didn't do...  
"Bianca was taken by Van-Durven." The leader of the mafia that bother the Auditore family, it was supposed to be payment for the late deliveries of the weapons that he demanded.

And watching Ettoreo look up with fear, confusion and horror on his face... It was just...  
There was silence, the information slowly sinking in to the both of them and Ettoreo was handling it way better than Sam thought he would.

Seconds later, he spoke; "So... there is a possibility that she is still alive." Of course, Van-Durven does not out right kill, but he does way worse. Worse enough to make you want to be dead, there was still a slim chance that his aunt was still alive and there was a slight hope...  
He wanted so bad - to do something... He couldn't, not alone. And he could tell that Uncle Sam disapproved of his hope.

"Bianca is as good as dead." It pained his uncle to speak the truth, but there was no body and Ettoreo wasn't going to accept it like that.  
"I'm going to find out." Ettoreo promised, his voice hard and full of determination. And he would do it, no one was going to stop him.


	14. Chapter 14

"You can't find her Ettoreo, you can't get her back and you cannot get Van-Durven on your own. She is as good as dead!" Samuele shouted, reaching forward and putting a vise-like grip on the younger man's bicep, stopping him from reaching the door and then going to talk to the most powerful man in all of Italy.

"Good as dead is not dead." Ettoreo said as he stopped and turned himself to face his uncle, an angered look in his eyes that meant he was not giving up on this, he needed proof. But usually, that proof would get him killed. If he dare to up to the man who claimed to own their lives...  
Certainly that man would take it from him.

He liked to play God in the worst way possible, Ettoreo had seen it. Once or twice before and it was an awful thing, and if Bianca was stuffing that, then he had to get there faster before th he actually could kill her.  
He just had a feeling about this, a feeling that he shouldn't give up on this - no matter what anyone said.  
"Good as dead, Ettoreo. There is nothing we can do for her." His uncle was trying to reason with him, trying to make him change his mind but he wasn't because there was already a hint of a plan beginning to form in his mind... slowly.

"I was told to be there during the... ceremony." Ettoreo suddenly said, quietly so he wasn't sure if his uncle had heard him. Apparently he had - the grip on his arm slowly loosened until it was nothing, he was shocked. But the younger did not need to look at him to be sure of it, and he did not feel pride that he was invited.

He felt a horrible guilt in his stomach, and it really hurt. He hated it. It wasn't right to him at all, to do this and some might even say that it would be an honor. But it wasn't, it wasn't any more because it was Arizona and it was her brother and it was people who had a life that wasn't here.  
And he couldn't let it be taken away, and for what reason? What sick person finds enjoyment in one's suffering?

Him and his family were weak, they couldn't stand up for themselves, they wouldn't and they were believing that they had a debt to pay off. He couldn't let this go on longer, six months... they had been capturing people and giving them to Van-Durven's mafia, killing those people. They didn't actually put them through torture, but they did kill them by inviting them in the first place and he used to think it was for the best.  
He used to hear that it was for the best and believe it. But not any more, that stops here. Even if it meant he was killing himself to stop it, he was going to because no one else was going to get hurt...

But there was no other way he could do it without giving two more lives... Benny's and Ari's...  
Two more lives and then no more would be lost. Two more.  
Two is not a number greater than the ones that will be killed if he let this go on. Why did it have to be them? Why did he just start caring?

Especially for these people, why did the feelings just start? Ettoreo felt defeated, he honestly did. But just because of that feeling, he wasn't going to give up. He couldn't...  
He could stop and think about the problem, but there was no way he was giving up...

But all of this was just so sudden... He had until the party, tomorrow tot think of something that would helping him.  
"You don't know what you could create if you try something... are you going to risk your family's life, your friends?!" Samuele asked, glaring at his nephew with dark brown eyes that were hard and angry, but more afraid for what Ettoreo might do and the decisions he could make. The whole family could handle themselves, but they would be run out of business and Van-Durven could do that, he knew how to.  
And he could do it with ease and then they wouldn't have anything left... nothing.

While Ettoreo said nothing, just started at the ground and waited until he could leave, Samuele knew that there would be a masquerade party where someone would have to take the fresh bodies...  
And usually it was the youngest Auditore, but Federico would do it if something happened to the youngest. And that was when he realised he would have to tell his sister about her son's behavior, what he was planning and what he felt. If he didn't then it was possible the kid could kill himself and his family, it wasn't going to happen.

Samuele would have to make sure of that.

~

"Arizona, Benjamin. We need to go now, we might have to get back sooner than expected." Ettoreo said as he quickly walked out of his uncle's office, he looked very angry and very close to exploding.  
Very angry... and that was one of the reasons Benny didn't see it wise to argue with the man. So he quickly finished off the rounds and clicked the gun back on safe mode before he set it down - then following after their guide (who already had Arizona). Whatever set this man off must've been really personal, perhaps it had to do something with his aunt and he didn't like the answer he had received from his uncle about her death. At least that's what Benny assumed they had been talking about, it was in Italian and he barely knew a word of that language. Still - he wasn't stupid and it was easy to assume...

"We will eat, and then I will be taking you back to the hotel." He said, letting go of Ari so she could go through the door first, holding it so Benny could get out next - he shut the door behind himself and then started to lead the siblings back to the car, taking big strides as he went. His hands curled up into fists and his shoulders were tense.  
An uncomfortable silence settled behind him, no one tried to break it and no one tried to argue with him because he did not need people telling him that he couldn't do things that he wanted to.

No, he wasn't spoiled like that. These were things that he needed to do, and why he didn't just warn the Felocifes about the mafia so they could get on the plane and leave... It was because he would need some help with this, and he knew, if Arizona got in trouble, Benny would be there to save her and Ettoreop would help...  
It was the only way, if he told them to leave and they left today, how was he going to get to Van-Durven? He practically knew nothing about the man expect for what he looks like, what he does and if he tried to find anything else about him, there would be a bullet in his head.

So... his point stood, and Ettoreo would do every thing in his power to make sure that the two siblings would return to their home, alive. That wasn't his main goal, but it was apart of it.  
His main goal was trying to get Bianca back. Dead or alive, he just wanted to know... He wanted to make sure before he moved on from her death. But it doesn't make sense why they'd take her... they did nothing wrong.

Nothing at all...

Or at least something he wasn't told of. And why would that happen to him? Did they know this would happen? That he would turn and try to make things right his own way?  
No one could know that - Ettoreo looked back at the siblings then he opened the door and got inside, slowly pulling the gun from his waistband of his jeans. The one Benny had been using.  
If he was going to retaliate, he would need a weapon to help him.


	15. Chapter 15

"Pasta or pizza?"  
"You say pizza funny."  
"What..? What?"  
"It's Peet-za. Not peez-a."  
There was a moment's silence around them as Ettoreo turned his head and looked to Ari, who was looking around at the shops and smiling at the things that were in them, not the miniature argument she and their guide had just had, and he looked mildly annoyed, but amused at the same time.  
"Well, however you lo americanos say it. That is how I say it." And he seemed to be in a lighter mood now that food was an option maybe he was just hungry and sad, he could still be sad... But he wasn't showing it.

"You're accent is getting heavier." Ari helpfully pointed out as she turned her head to glance at the man and then smirked at him when he frowned, not looking at her, but looking at what was in front of him. Which there was a million things in front of them and all being people, so there was really no way to tell who he was frowning at.

Benny tensed up as he realised that they had to go through that mass of people, he absolutely hated crowds. He didn't want to go in there, but there wasn't a way around so he had to go through. He didn't like the mass of people, the body heat, the smells, the sounds and the danger of someone on the edge of snapping...

Those were the reasons he disliked crowds, Ari had no problems with them, as long as they would move when she wanted them, that would be just fine for her. Because she darted inside the crowd and shuffled past people, "Ugh, why is there so many people?!" She called back to Ettoreo, taking a quick glance at him before she was going a little bit faster, but was still within hearing-range.

"I don't know, why don't you ask them." Ettoreo replied as he struggled through people, asking them (politely) to move. While Benny followed close behind him because it was hard to make his own path.  
And it seems that the sarcasm has returned, it didn't really fit the Italian man because he sounded pìssy when he was sarcastic. And then he got angry when people were offended...  
So, yeah...  
How on earth did Benny know that? His sister told him, after Luciano had told her...

Oh, and thinking of Luciano, shouldn't they have talked by now? Maybe the next time the two siblings and their guide get back because honestly, there has been no in between time. For them at least...  
Well, when he went to go get aspirin for Ari's headache, he could've talked to him then... but it just slipped his mind.

Damm.

It was actually 'oh well' but they had a few more days here, three. They only had three more days here, so why would Benny be stressing over the mafia? Nothing has shown in the two days he has been here, something cause suspicion, but not enough for him to go bonkers over.  
"You two still did not answer my question." Ettoreo said as his voice broke through the man's train of thoughts, "What?- oh, it doesn't matter. I like both." Benny replied as he nudged past his guide and finally got out of the crowd, he felt like he was packed and ready to go to a slaughterhouse with a bunch of other cows.

"Hey, guys, I need to tell you something. Stop right there!" Ari shouted as she jumped in front of them and made them stop, "Alright -" whatever she was going to say next, Benny clearly had no interest in, but he wasn't going anywhere because she'd make him stand right here, where she wanted him and then she'd talk. Just to annoy him.

"Okay, so... there is a pizza restaurant right there, and then a pasta one over there." She motioned to both restaurants that were across from each other, and the eldest couldn't help himself, "Great, which one are we eating at?"  
Arizona sent him a very angry look that told him to shut up, he did, but didn't stop himself from shooting her a smug look.

"And then, there a pasta and a pizza restaurant down there! So everyone is happy! Come on!" Ari said as she finished and then turned around before taking off at a jog to the restaurant that was at the end of the street, "I just found that amusing for whatever reason." Arizona called over her shoulder as a 'by-the-way', not because her brain happily made it up for her. Benny didn't care, and he was sure Ettoreo didn't, he would just pretend to just to make Arizona happy. Really, all the two men wanted was to eat and then be done with it.

"So, you know how-to shoot a gun and you know how to fight with a sword." Ettoreo said out loud as he sat down at the table outside, the girl looked up at him and shrugged, "I've fought with poles, broomsticks and sticks, I don't see the difference in any of them."  
"Except for, one can kill you and the others can just hurt you." Benny pointed out, looking down at the food he had decided to get, it did look good... honestly, but he just wasn't exactly feeling the hunger, which was odd for him since he deliberately skipped breakfast so he could have lunch.

Maybe his stomach was shrinking, or he hated the smell of gunpowder on his clothes, he hated it when people lied to him.  
Luckily he recognized it after the second shot - how? Because it left a bullet hole in the target he was shooting at. Blanks don't leave holes from a far away target. You were talking to a weapons expert, so, of course he would know.

"Who taught you how to shoot?" Ettoreo asked after a moments silence, it was hard to talk about it. But it was okay with Benny, he could handle talking to this man for whatever reason.  
Ari trusted him, and Benny was starting to. Thought before he could ever had a real chance, they'd be gone. Which was a shame.  
He might actually be starting to like this place.

"Uh, my father. That was the third time I've gone." Benny lied, raising his head just a bit so he could glare at his sister, telling her to keep her mouth shut about the lies he was telling.  
Not all of them were, the one where it was his third time was a lie, he had gone shooting many times and unfortunately got turned into a weapons expert like his father. Which Benny did not want to be his father... not at all...

His father... killed. Not for fun, not because he could, he killed because he had to. He was in one of the wars, across the world that dealt with terrorists. And he killed, tortured, blew up, did all kinds of things to those men. It changed him - being in the war, he was all paranoid, he always had a gun on him and he insisted he was fine.

And he was practically completely normal, he wasn't PTSDing, he just got paranoid and he liked weapons now. He didn't trust anyone and Benny was his only son, who else could he share it to?  
He would take Benny - every day, in his truck to a field where he taught him from dusk till dawn, about everything he knew. Telling him things that a young kid shouldn't have to worry about, he taught his son to be like him. Aware of everything, trusting no one and protecting your family.

He converted Benny into him, and the kid had no idea why. But from nine, to thirteen, he listen to his father and did everything he ever could for his father... then one day, he chose that one day - the one day Benny was supposed to enjoy but now he hates with every fiber of his being...  
His birthday, when he turned fourteen, he had a party over at his house and his father was completely fine. Or that's what Benny had thought, but when his father grabbed his shoulder with a tight grip and stared him in the eyes, he should've known, "Remember what I taught you, Benny."  
"Of course, pa."  
"And take care of your ma, your sisters too. You look out for them girls and never let anything hurt them."  
"Yes pa, I promise." Benny had said, getting a little bit impatient because he wanted to get back to the party so he could hang out with his friends, but his father hugged him, and Benny returned the embrace with a smile on his face.

His father went inside the house and Benny went back to his friends, only to be running inside a couple minutes later at the sound of a gun going off.  
The old bästard couldn't even wait until tomorrow.  
And he was there, in the room, sitting beside his father's body and knowing he could've done something.

~

Benny sighed slowly as he raised his head up, that had really put a damp on his mood - he would now always celebrate his birthday on the day after his father died. Only because if he did it on the real day, then it would feel like he was celebrating his father's death.  
He didn't want to do that.

Benny didn't want kids, he didn't want people in his life and he preferred to be alone. So he wouldn't have to trust anyone, so he would hurt anyone... he was afraid that if he had kids, he would turn into his father. More and more like him, and who wants that?! Who would ever abandon their children and wife for no reason?  
There was not a damm answer out there that would satisfy Benny's questions. Not a damm one.  
You don't live to please yourself, you live to please others. To make sure they have a good life because it's what most deserve. But Benny-... Benny didn't want that, he didn't want to have to owe people. He didn't...  
He didn't...

Silence was welcome sometimes, but now... it wasn't; it was uncomfortable... no one wanted to talk, might as well... she had a curious question about her brother that she didn't want to ask outright. So...  
"Oh, she's a pretty girl." Arizona muttered, loud enough so the males could hear her as she looked to a blonde. Ettoreo easily took the bait and started to 'observe' the woman, while Benny just took a glance to her and man a 'hmh' under his breath, he was now looking at his phone for whatever reason.

"I don't like women." Benny said out loud, as soon as Ari glanced to him to see his reaction. She stiffened in her seat as she realized what her brother might be. Gross.

Ettoreo stopped staring and turned himself to look at Benny, his eyebrows raised in surprise as he started to think that this man was... well, the totally opposite of him.  
"Stop looking at me like that - I don't like men either." Benny said as he glanced up from his phone and glanced to both of the people sitting at his table, giving him an annoyed look.

If it was any of their business with who he liked, he'd be sure to tell Arizona who he liked first.  
"Please tell me you don't like animals or children." Ettoreo said slowly, eyeing the man as if he was unsure about him. Snow this was annoying, why was there ever a reason to question someone's sexuality and to what 'species' they were attracted to?

"Oh my God, I don't like anything, anyone, okay?" Benny snapped as he glared at them, seeing Ari making a little face at him; she was amused by his answers. Because it easily answered the question she was trying to ask. But this was not funny for him, he didn't like to be put on the spot.  
"So your asexual?" Ettoreo asked, almost as if he was curious by the very word and how asexual people could live without sex on a constant basis. Apparently to the Italian man, who's drive was on fifteen out of ten-to-one. And it was weird that someone couldn't do... what he did and found nothing and no one to his liking.

"Yes, he is. He has no sexual life." Arizona said, butting into the conversation so she could bother her brother even more, and by now, he was tuning them out completely because he was not talking about this with his sister and a man he barely knew.  
It was embarrassing.

"No..?" And still, Ettoreo could not comprehend the ways of Benjamin Felocife.  
"He's still a virgin."  
"So are you." Benny added without thinking, then he raised his head up and sent a glare to the Italian man that said 'keep your mits off of her'. Said Italian man raised his hands in surrender while Arizona had a red coloring on her cheeks because of the embarrassment that he now put on her.

"Twenty-six and still a virgin... we're you ugly back then?" He asked, raising his head after he had checked his phone.  
Benny sighed loudly, "Stop talking about our sex life, please." He was not digging himself deeper into this. It had gone on far enough neither of the siblings were receiving any enjoyment from it.  
"Okay, okay. Shove it in, we need to get back."

Benny was still not hungry.


	16. Chapter 16

Well... that was the weirdest thing he had ever seen since being here, weird and unexplained and he would never get an answer because hours later, he would still be gone.

The moment the three people arrived at the hotel (he found out it was called The Grand Hotel... in Italian. Eh, he didn't speak it, nor did he care about it.), Mama Maria and her husband and her other son along with Luciano came outside, over to the car, Ettoreo was seized like he was some kind of criminal by his brother and father, then he was taken inside.  
What in the hell was going on around here?!

Ari, of course, tried to step forward and call out to Ettoreo, her brother had to catch her wrist and shake his head. Though he too was dying to know what was going on, he wasn't desperate to make this family angry about nosy guests. It was their family business no matter what...  
Luciano kept his head down for the time being, then he raised it up and walked over to the siblings after Ettoreo had been taken inside.

Benny adjusted his bag and glanced to the other man, "What's going on?" He asked, pointing in the direction that the Auditores went, then he was looking back to Luciano, who had a guilt look on his face. It wasn't noticeable by anyone, but his eyes draw together just slightly and his lips frowned just a bit, Benny was not easily fooled.  
"Him and his parents had a fight, they're going to talk about it." The blonde replied as he glanced in that direction, his fingers twitching just a bit and he winced just a bit.

It was hard to keep his mouth closed, but he did. Benny could tell a lie, he was good with that. But he could detect them better, Luciano was lying, or he was hiding something... something that these two siblings were not supposed to know... Benny intended to find out.

"B-but... he'll be back, right? He'll be taking us to the masquerade party, he said he would - Benny, he said he would." Arizona nearly wailed, her voice weak and dripping with sadness. Benny took a glance to his sister and saw she was on the verge of a mental break down because of the thought that their guide wouldn't be there.  
Oh yeah, that's how he found out that there was a masquerade party, surprise!

Now, this might come as a shock to some... but Benny knew how to dance. All kinds of dancing, all of them actually. He took it up after his twin had pressured him, his father taught him how to dance as well and Benny was grateful for it, he had better balance, his legs were stronger and... it helped him to just flow, imagining life as one big dance.  
A fight was kinda like that, so it really helped.

His sister knew ballet, like him... She knew a couple of dances from the languages she spoke as well, so, if there was dancing (which there was going to be) at this place, then they were prepared for it.  
"He said..."

Oh, yes! His sister was about ready to start crying for a guy that she had grown attached to, and he was sure these feelings were new to her. Benny had read every relationship book there was, just so he could protect his sister's from a bad one, show them what to look for and what to avoid and how to prevent himself from feeling the feelings that were described in the book, he honestly had never felt those.  
Benny hoped his sister wasn't feeling those. Maybe she wasn't, maybe she was just 'in-love' or liking how kind he was. She didn't actually love him, which was impossible, but not so... because sometimes you can just... know. It hasn't happened to him and it is likely it never will... because he has walls put up.  
And no-one was getting in.

"Come on- thank you." Benny finished with thanking Luciano before he wrapped an arm around Ari and started to lead her inside, "You can tell me about it when we get up to the room." The older brother told her, giving his sister a light hug, while she didn't reply, she just acknowledged it with a feeble sniff.  
"Most likely it's just a family argument, he'll be back soon." Benny tried to tell her, but she knew him well enough to know that didn't look like an argument at all. It looked more like 'you're grounded until the day you die'. And how old was Ettoreo? Twenty-five?  
Yeah... I don't think they can ground him, not unless he lives here. Which was more likely that he did.

Don't worry, he'd figure it out before... this masquerade party was supposed to happen. Whenever it was, perhaps tomorrow, was it supposed to be a ball? Jesus!  
He didn't know shìt.

"Here, go ahead and go up." Benny said as he gave her the bag of towels and let her go into the elevator, "I'm just going to talk to Luciano." And get some answers, he added silently. Ari nodded to him, but didn't say anything as her brother turned off and trotted over to where Luciano was - outside and just staring at nothing and everything at the same time.  
Benny slowly approached him after he had left the hotel, no he was not saying this man was dangerous. He could be dangerous when someone startled him, so he was being careful about approaching the man.

"My sister mentioned the masquerade ball... when will that be?" It was the best way he knew how to find something out, ask a simple question and then slowly work up to what he wanted to know. The blonde man blinked aft we a moment and then turned shield to face Benny, "Tomorrow. When the sun goes down. Which just imagine is around six or seven." Good to know, but they didn't have anything to wear and he wasn't even sure that he'd be going there.  
"Anywhere we can get some... 'proper' clothes for the masquerade?" Well, he didn't necessarily want to buy something and then take it back to America where he'd never be using it again.  
"Yes, actually, I do. Me, Federico or Ettoreo will be taking you there." Luciano replied, he liked to keep things simple, and he liked to look at Benny to judge his reaction. Or he found Benny attractive, he couldn't help but admit, he did look ravishing.

"They can't ground, Ettoreo, can they?" He was expecting something simple, like 'yes' or 'no'. Luciano was no simple man when it came to questions like that, simple 'yes' or 'no' questions, it would be interesting to have a conversation with this man, and see how long they could go at each other before they had nothing else to say.  
"Technically, no. He is twenty-five years of age and no longer a child," at least with his body, his mind still thinks he's a teenager, "but he still lives with his parents and he must listen to them under their roof, so, yes. They can ground him and it is most likely what they are going to do and forbid him to go to the masquerade with you and your sister." That's when Luciano broke his gaze and went to look elsewhere.

Short answer, long. Oh-kay then.

"Is there anything he can do or I can do to allow him to go with us? My sister was really hoping he'd be able to join." And I think I trust him a bit more than everyone else.  
"I'm not sure, his parents seemed really upset after they received a call from his uncle." The man replied with a shrug, then he adopted a posture that clearly said he was done talking with Benny and it he didn't leave, he would smack him. Alright, message taken.  
Benny worked his jaw for a moment before he turned around, "Thank you." Then he went back inside and headed for the stairs so he could take himself up to his sister's room and tell her the answers he received from the questions he had asked.

~~~

"What the hell were you thinking?!"  
"That's the thing, Maria, he wasn't!"  
Ettoreo quickly got his feet under himself after he had been tossed to the ground like a dog, his brother blocked the door while his mother and father stood in front of him with anger on their faces. But only he wasn't a dog, and he had emotions.

"You don't know Bianca like I do! She was my mother!" Of course she wasn't his real mother, she wasn't even related to him, none of these people were and they knew it. They were cruel people, in their own sick way and now he was seeing Bianca's side of the story.  
"How could you..?"

"Sure you took me in, but you kill my mother. And she is the closest thing I have to one, but she is gone now and I am not going to accept it like that! Not until I see her dead." Ettoreo added in a quieter voice as he glanced to the ground for a moment, his golden eyes wanting to fill with tears and then spill over, but he didn't have any at all.  
He had none left because it was all gone, he was ready to shut down...

And then Ettoreo remembered that he had a gun, that was loaded... but he wasn't doing it now. He wouldn't be doing it until tomorrow, he raised his head up once more and glared at his adoptive family.  
"We do not go against the mafia, Ettoreo. And we will give you a second chance, to rebuke this behavior. Or you know what comes next..." with that, Federico stepped forward and pulled his own gun from the waist band of his jeans and pointed it at Ettoreo's head, pulling the hammer back slowly - the young man with fierce golden eyes stared at the barrel, unafraid and then glared back to the rest of his family.

"I am not afraid." He replied, and he wasn't... at least, not right away. Not until Arizona settled in his mind, he felt fear for a moment, for her... but Ettoreo refused to show it and he didn't.  
"You are not to leave this hotel for any reason, not unless Federico or Luciano is with you." Maria decided, then she and her husband, as well as the other adopted son, turned and left Ettoreo alone in the holding cell. Which was locked behind them so he could no longer get out.

It wouldn't hold him...  
Nothing will ever hold him when he is furious.


	17. Chapter 17

After the talk he had with Luciano, Benny had walked up the stairs and back together his room with a couple more questions than he had answers to, but those could be solved later by asking Maria and Marcelino, but maybe they wouldn't be too fond with some guests poking into work few things that they shouldn't be poking into.  
Well he didn't give two (not one, but two) shìts about what they thought. All he wanted was his sister happy and the thought that Ettoreo wouldn't be there was enough to make her upset, she must've promised him something or he promised her something.

Promises were a big part of his sister's life, she holds up to the promises she made, even if the other person didn't. Not once has she ever had to break her promise...  
And she won't, ever. She was the only good thing in his life, and perhaps even the world if he's looked at it, and all Benny wanted was to do right by here and make her have the life she deserves.

And he doesn't know the internal struggles she's going through, so all he can do is try to make her life a little better...  
But he didn't know how to do that until she told him, or he asked her.

When he reached their door, he paused for a moment and looked at it for a long moment, then he raised his fist and knocked on the door, letting himself in after a couple seconds.  
And he found his little sitting in her bed, curled up with all the blankets and pillows, reading a book. Back when they were little, they all had established knocking patterns so each other could recognise the knock whenever they wanted to know who it was.

A couple times, Benjamin had used one of his sister's knock to bother them, but that didn't end well because they told their Pomeranian to go 'attack' him, he had to run for a very long time, all the way to the lake to get rid of the devil animal.  
When he reached the dock of the lake, he acted like he was going to jump in and instead trapped the rope that hung from a huge tree beside the dock.

And Benny held onto that rope with all his might and swing forward, looking down and watching as the stupid Pomeranian, Greenbean was his name (he was brown and white and they were children), tried to nip at Benny's feet while he was still running, then the dog ended up falling into the lake and almost drowned, but at the last second, his sister came in, saved the dog and they all went back. Deciding never to ever speak of it again.

It was practically blackmail against Benny, because he ran away from the dog instead of trying to fight it off. He claimed he didn't want to hurt his sisters' dog. But, whatever the reason, it was too late to use it now.

Benny looked at his sister with a soft expression as he shut and locked the door behind himself and then moved over to his bed which was missing practically everything.  
He wanted to sympathize with her, but he didn't exactly know why she was so upset that he was gone, maybe he promised that he'd show her around the town for the best gown shops. Maybe he even offered her to buy one for her, and May be she was really looking forward to spending some more time with him but then family matters go in the way and he was dragged off like he was a prisoner... And he went like one too and there was no reason why. No answers and he would admit that he's curious.

And he would admit that he was angry over it. Only because it sent his sister into stealing all of the blankets and attempting to ignore his presences while she read whatever book she was reading.  
If Benny was being serious, he wouldn't even care about Ettoreo.

Not in the way, Ari did, at least...

~

"Did you promise him a dance?" Benny asked her, after watching her face for a moment, it scrunched up after he had spoken like she was going to cry. But she didn't, instead, she let out a long sigh of clear sadness and regret.  
"We still have until tomorrow... it isn't like the world has ended." Benny said in an attempt to lighten the mood a little bit, her green eyes flicked to him and a slight smile placed itself on her face, then she was looking away again and trying to read her book, but her mind was distracted and it just read over the one line... over and over again because it didn't seem to be registering, just... yet.

She wasn't going to answer him, for fear of breaking down. She was just really disappointed that Ettoreo hadn't come back yet, whether it had something to do with his aunt, Bianca... or something else.  
She didn't know.  
She was just rather disappointed because someone didn't hold up to their end of the promise, but this was not his fault and she wasn't blaming him. She just didn't like what his family did to him, and her brother was right (she didn't want him to get a bigger head), there always was tomorrow that she could wait for and perhaps it would be better then.

"Hey, scoot over." Benny said as he moved over to her bed, Ari glanced up at him, a soft smile playing on her face as she moved over so her elder brother could get in the bed with her.  
He pulled the blankets over his body and then used one of the pillows to support his head as he looked into her eyes after lowering the book down, just to make sure she was looking at him, then he adopted a tired look on his face as he shifted himself just a bit.

This is what they'd always used to do, it was just an excuse from being alone... Benny always looked out for his little sister, he would sleep in his bedroom alone while Ari slept in a different room.  
He would come in and chose her bed to climb into and they'd talk, laugh about things... at least until they were told to be quiet.  
The two siblings had always had a strong bond... it just kinda ran through the family and it was really nice to know that it wasn't gone, even when their past was behind them.

"In the boat today," Arizona decided not to correct him, she wasn't there to talk, she was just here to listen to what her brother had to say while studying his face and listening to his breath. Seeing if there was any changes in it, and for a moment... He looked confused and conflicted, as if there was something he wanted to tell her  
But instead, he didn't and just signed to himself. Continuing on with what he was originally saying.

"I was leaning over the side of it and just touching the water when I began to think about what we would be, if we were not humans. What we represent in the world... I was water, I can take the shake of anything and attempt to it. I can be cold or heated. I very ruthless at times, angry and unrelenting. Then again, I can be calm... And I will make a splash if I need to." He paused a moment, his eyes coming away from her and glancing to the window.  
"You are the wind, very strong, determined, light, gentle and sometimes not even there at all. You can move me in ways I don't want to be moved... you're just there to move things that don't seem to want to move..."

"I suppose we are something that we fear." Ari said at last, her voice low and barely a whisper. And she was right... He knew she was, but he didn't say anything else - other than; "Yeah... I suppose we are."

And then everything went silent, and the siblings lay in bed, allowing their thoughts to roam in places that had barely been visited before.  
For now it was fine.


	18. Chapter 18

Early in the morning, or, so it seemed since the siblings had practically been up since twelve at night, sharing small stories that made them think about the life choices they have made and wonder if they could've chose anything that made their life better.

But this was the life they had now and they couldn't change it... they fell asleep after twelve A.M.  
And slept until nine where a loud knocking was their alarm clock, but only there was no snooze button and it came with shouting in Italian from on my once voice that both of them would be able to recognize.

"You're gonna wake them up." Luciano muttered from outside of the door as Benny rolled himself out of bed (literally, he rolled over and fell off of the bed, landing on his hands and knees before he crawled forward and finally got his feet under himself.) and then walked over to the door where he just leaned against the wall to listen to Ettoreo and Luciano converse.

"That's what I'm trying to do!" Ettoreo shouted as the knocking paused for a moment, then it resumed and so did the Italian shouts for them to wake up, maybe the man should be more aware of the other people who sleep around them.

Benny made an annoyed noise under his breath as he unlocked both of the locks and opened the door before Ettoreo could keep knocking like the idiot he was.  
"I think you should be more considerate of the other people you could be waking up." He stated, his eyes were tired, but he was serious, his hair was all ruffled up, but he didn't care what they thought.  
And his outfit was most appropriate for just waking up, a wife-beater and boxers, as well as one sock.

 

Ettoreo raised his eyebrows when he looked down at Benny's feet, "You are missing a sock."  
Benny adapted a stance, one like Superman, "Thank you for noticing that, I also noticed it." Then he relaxed his pose and just glared, evily at the person who had some him from his sleep, which he had to say, it was very good. He liked it very much when nothing was bothering him, he knew where his sister was and he could very easily forget about the past for a few hours... unless it resurfaces in a dream...

Which they have stopped, for now... as if he had come to terms with it, as if he had learned to accept it. Maybe Benny had, maybe he knew that what was in the past, stayed there.  
A repeat wouldn't happen as long as you kept an eye on it... as long as you made sure everything was alright and you had control of every little detail and you made sure that it went your way, that it'd always go your way.

 

But that certainly wasn't how things worked, and it would never work that way. Even with practice and careful planning, all you can do is just try and be prepared for what comes next, even if you have no idea what it might be. Just... always keep alert. That's the only thing you could do and then you'd just have to follow through with whatever is thrown your way.

Changing it is hard enough, so why would you?

 

"May I step in? I have something to tell you." Ettoreo said as he started to move past Benny, darting inside before said man could even catch the Italian. Perhaps that man was not 'grounded' - maybe his family only had a serious talking to and he was suspended from doing whatever he likes to do.

Whatever that would be, the other man was acting as if nothing happened yesterday, he was acting like everything was A-okay.  
You see the keyword? 'Acting', Benny was the only one who could see through it and notice how tense he was, nervous maybe and very, very jittery.

The eldest sibling moved away from the door so Luciano could come in since Ettoreo did so. He was now standing at the edge of Benny's sister's bed and just looking at her sleeping form. As if he was admiring the way she looked so peaceful, so beautiful.

Not that she wasn't beautiful when she was awake... there was just something Ettoreo admired about sleeping women. Perhaps it was their natural beauty, or the way that they couldn't hide themselves when they were sleeping.  
It was like, sleep... was their truest form.

And hers was very beautiful, it just showed that she had a kind face with a gentle spirit underneath.  
There was no way, he was ever letting this continue. It stops with them. And if no-one else will stand with him, he will stand alone. And he will not stop until Van-Durven is dead... tonight.  
It was all going down tonight and he was not allowed to leave the premises without Luciano.

Luciano would try to stop him. But he would not help the Auditores either, he never has and he never will because he doesn't like to get his hands dirty like that.  
Though the police wouldn't ever come investigate, they just wouldn't listen to a troublemaker like Ettoreo and those Auditores could make up a lie, any lie. Every lie and they would believe it.

That's what they've been doing for six months, lying about where the guests have gone and never batting an eye, paying thousands to keep it secret, not telling anything to anyone and shutting themselves out from the world... it was madness.  
He couldn't, he wouldn't live like this anymore.

 

"And why have you come into our room to disturb our peace?" Benny then asked him, taking his attention away from all the angered thoughts he had that were just spent up and waiting for any given moment to explode in anger and just unleash all that has been held inside for so long... so long...  
A sigh escaped Ettoreo's lips and it was not because of the American who rarely had an idea of what was going on, it was...

The man shook his head, then ran a hand through his silky black hair that he had left untied for the time-being.  
"The masquerade is tonight, and since you will be going and I can see you have nothing to wear, Luciano and I will be taking you out shopping, all expenses paid."

And while he was talking, Benny was stretching his arms out and yawning, using one of his hands to rub the back of his neck, his own back muscles sticking out. And he could feel eyes on him, which could only be one person. His Prince Charming, Luciano.  
And yes, he was a tease. Stretching just a bit longer in that too tight t-shirt and rolling his shoulders just a bit before he felt something pop, and that was enough stretching for him.  
Wait a minute... did Ettoreo say 'shopping'? And 'all expenses paid'? He did like free things, but he hated shopping.

Benny yelped and jumped forward when he felt a piercing gaze on his arse that startled him to no end, it felt like something actually touched him and he hated being touch!  
Can't people just respect what he did and didn't like.

 

"Did you say shopping?" Arizona asked as she raised her head, her dark brown hair was a bit matted, but not enough to wear it would be a rat's nest.  
Benny made a noise of protest in his throat, when Ari heard the word 'shopping' she goes insane like a dog for a treat. And he was more like the cat who thought the dog was an idiot and would like to just lay down and sleep with no noise at all.  
But he wouldn't call his sister an idiot, she'd smack him. Or punch him... and she could hit very hard.

 

"Masquerade shopping." Ettoreo confirmed with a nod, "All expenses paid?"  
"Of course." And then he put on the charming smile that he would always use one girl and it'd make them fall for him. Luckily his sister doesn't fall for those things because she was asexual for a long time too.

"Oh my God, yes!" She said as she sat up and climbed out of her bed, "You two boys, get out! Benny and I will meet you downstairs." And that's when she was up, running around.  
'Running around', more like; running at the two Italian men who were standing there, staring at her because she was only in a short nighty-gown.

 

That was enough for Benny want to get up and kick the both of them in the spot where it hurts the most. Because no-one is allowed to look at his sister like that...  
"Aye! Aye! Alright, I'm going." Ettoreo said as he held his hands up in surrender, he turned around along with Luciano who was trying to be respectful by averting his eyes. But it was hard, Ari was a very beautiful woman. She had the curves, she had the eyes, she had the hair and she was nearly everything any man could ever want.

But no one was going to get her, unless he knew that the man would be the right one for her, because he never ever wanted her to get hurt.  
"Thirty minutes, I promise!" Arizona was saying as she nudged them out, ignoring what Ettoreo was saying about a time limit type of thing.

 

Benny could take quick showers and his sister could as well, as long as she was prompted to.  
"I can't wait, it's gonna be so fun!" Ari said as she started to trot around, gathering her clothes up. A smile on her face because not only was it gonna be fun shopping, it was gonna be fun watching Benny be dragged around shops like he doesn't want to...

 

And just as she finished her sentence, Benny groaned loudly and flopped back on the bed.  
He hated shopping.


	19. Chapter 19

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some of these chapters will be merged if this is ever published.

"But I don't want to go..." Benny whined as he was pushed out of the door, helplessly dragging his feet so his sister would have a harder time getting him to move, she then reached around into the front of his jeans (he always wore jeans, why? Maybe because they were really comfortable to him), and then reached inside of his pocket and took something out, then she stopped pushing him out of the door and let him go.  
"Ugh, thank you." And with that, his sister trotted around him and started for the elevator, while he moved for the door he was just pushed out of because he didn't want to leave.

"Good luck getting back in, I have your card." Damm. It.  
He didn't know what she had been reaching for so he couldn't stop her from doing what she wanted, "I hate you." Benny said in annoyance as he patted his pockets just to make sure she wasn't screw with him, and sure as shìt, it was gone.

He was going to murder her!

 

The eldest groaned and took off at a jog, heading for the stairs. So he could catch her in time and hopefully get his card back from her. But knowing his sister, it was 'come with me or you'll never get it back.' And he would like to have access to getting in and out of his own room and going where he pleased, but he really didn't want to go shopping for some fancy clothing that he wouldn't ever use once he returned to Denver. It was just a waste of money that could be spent on better things or given to a charity that needed it.

He would be doing that if he was rich, he'd give half of his money to the poor and charities because everyone needed a place to start and if they ended up back on the bottom, than that was not his fault, he gave them m an advantage, they spent it poorly and now they are back where they started.  
And if they did that, they don't deserve anything he offered them.

 

Benny reached the last step just as his sister was walking out the front door, following after the two men that had so graciously woke them up for shopping. He groaned and then darted after them, pushing opened the door right before it closed and coming to a stop beside the door of the car, "Fine, I'm coming, open the door."  
And so it was opened and he climbed in, sitting beside his sister and taking the card that she offered him, a very unhappy and annoyed look was on his face as he glared at her, she would get hers.

Oh, yes... He would figure out a way to get her back for making him come shopping. She knew he hated shopping, like... a lot.  
Shopping was the worst thing... it always had been, to him at least and what happened was - when his mom too him shopping, he lost her in the mall and he was so frantic, running around and yelling for her. It was the scariest time of his life, and eventually he found her. But she wasn't even looking for him, she was just acting like he never left and that was when he had decided that shopping was the most evil thing in the world and he would never, ever do it again.

He hated shopping so much, that for their fifteenth birthday, he said to... Tina, "Go pick out what you like, I'll give you some money to pay for it. Then I'll wrap it up and we can pretend that I got it for you." He wasn't lazy, he was not lazy, he just didn't want to go shopping for that reason, he was afraid he would lose something, something very important.

Like his sister, or his phone, or his wallet. Or maybe himself. It was true, he didn't go shopping for ten years, he was actually dragged out shopping by Tina, who he followed and refused to leave, even if he had to go to the bathroom really badly. She promised him that she'd stay by the door, and he could tell that she want lying because they had a 'twin connection'... but uh, he listened to her and he darted out to find she was still there and waiting patiently for him.

Then they continued on with shopping and she got what she wanted and he was just griping about being here because he hated this place.  
He hated every place that meant you had to shop for things.

 

And for five more years, he didn't have to go shopping... but... this time, he really had to.  
He had to pick the coffin he wanted for his dead sister, he had to pick the flowers he wanted around her coffin and he had to pick the headstone. He had to pick what he wanted written on it and he had to pick which cemetery he wanted it at, he had to pick whether to put her beside mom or dad...  
He had to pick what would happen, he had to pick the words he would say, he had to pick the foods he wanted for after words, he had to pick out the suit he wanted to wear... And he had to pick... whether to kill himself. That night, after every thing, he felt so lost, so gone and just so empty...

 

And then he started to think about what Arizona was feeling, Tina was her sister too. Benny had wanted to comfort her, but he didn't know how because usually his sister would be there to help him figure it out.  
Tina would be there to help him and now she wasn't and he was blaming her death on himself, Ari's injuries on himself; he was just taking everything and placing it on his shoulders, just because he didn't want anyone who else to feel, and just because he felt like he deserved.

 

And by-God... killing yourself is not a good way to go out, it's a coward's way to leave, but he was bad... He got so bad afterwords, he didn't kill himself - but he pushed everyone away.  
And after he got out from that rough patch, he realised it might've been better to just end his own life, Ari had been doing just fine without Tina and she looked like she would be doing fine on her own.

~

And that was the reason why Benny hated shopping, bad things would always happening him.  
He hated to shop and he hated to pick things out.

 

The man dipped his head and sighed lowly, all he got was an eyeful of his jeans and button up shirt. Since when did he stop wearing belts?  
Oh, right... since he stopped wrestling with cows and getting pants that actually fit him, and his shoes... He stopped wearing boots and now he was wearing causal shoes. He had no idea what the hell they were called, all he knew was they looked good on him, with his outfit and they felt perfectly fine. He only wore what felt good...

"Alright, I will be taking you, Benjamin, to a well known store and-"  
Benny cut Ettoreo off with a strangled groan, "I don't want you to come with me, I don't even like you." Okay, he didn't actually mean to say the last part out loud, but it happened and he didn't necessarily feel sorry if he happened to hurt the man's feelings, all guys acted like they didn't have any. And when they did, it hurt worse.

Usually you'd think girls are sensitive.  
Guys are too, girls show it while guys hide it with... whatever.  
"Well," Ettorek started slowly as he shifted in the front seat to glance at the two siblings, "Would you want me staring at your sister's åss? Or a gäy man?"  
"I am not gåy." Luciano half shouted in annoyance as he directed a well-aimed punch to the man's unprotected side.  
"Ow!"

 

"Hey, guys, please don't kill us. I'd like to look at the dresses before I die." Ari said, giving them a less pleasant smile than what she would really give to people, Benny was on her side... with the 'staying alive' part.  
"I suppose, if he's..." Benny trailed off, if a gåy man would go with his sister rather than an over sexual straight man...

"I am not gäy."  
"Right, he just has less of an interest in girls than I do." Ettoreo piped up, "And that's your definition of gåy?" Benny asked, well that was a very strange way to define it, but okay. Who was he to attempt to change it and make someone look a different way?  
No.

"Your definition of 'gåy' is stupid, gäy used to mean happy." Ari said as she tucked a piece of her hair behind her ear and then fixed her dark blue blouse, one of her favorites. And then her skirt... that had pants underneath... He didn't like her wearing dresses or skirts so he demanded her to wear pants...

Luckily they had a mix of what she liked and what he wanted so, yeah.  
"Yeah, we now. But that is still how it's going to go, unless..?"  
"No." Benny said, he obviously still did not want any man going after his sister and he trusted Luciano more than he trusted Ettoreo. He trusted that man about as far as he could throw him. And couldn't throw him, there for, he trusted him - not at all.

 

And perhaps they could all learn to get along. Wouldn't that be nice.

 

Ettoreo just shrugged to the siblings, as his way of dismissing them, then he continued on. Soon arriving to a mall, where he parked, turned the car off and made everyone get out, "Alright, Amico, follow me." Ettoreo said as he made a grab for Benny's elbow, which the man gracefully dodge and edge just a bit closer to his sister and gave him a dark look, "I'll follow."

He didn't have cooties... he swore! Or Benny just didn't like to be touched, that was probably the case and it was the - oh, right, his sister had said that he was a germaphobe. Whatever.  
They were weird.

Luciano tapped Arizona on the shoulder and then motioned her away, probably to take her to the dress shop.  
Benny waved his sister goodbye before he was trotting after Ettoreo, this better go quick. And he better keep an eye on this man.


	20. Chapter 20

"Okay, I like this one, can we just go now?" Benny asked as he started to pull off the jacket that Ettoreo had made him put on, "No, put it back on - we're almost done." The Italian man said as he stepped forward, spinning the American man around and then fixing his jacket, smoothing it out and then looking him up and down, a thoughtful frown on his face as he observed the shoes he was wearing. No, he wasn't actually thoughtful...

He was judgemental. Åsshat.  
Benny didn't need people looking at him from ever angle and giving him these looks, judging his choices in life. And he was touching him, how many times did Benny have to say he didn't like to be touched?  
How many times would it take to drill it into that man's thick skull?!

"Stop judging me." Benny finally spoke up, allowing his green and silver eyes to have a hard edge to them, both directed at Ettoreo. Who glanced up once at him and then back to the jacket, almost as if he was shrugging him off.  
"I was not judging you, I was judging the clothes that are on you." He was silent as he took a step back, letting his golden eyes roam over the man's form, well, the clothes he was wearing. He was just using Benny as a model, actually. Though the man wouldn't be doing, if he had told him what he was actually doing...

 

Benny was then silent as he got the reason why Ettoreo was looking him up and down and having a 'thinking' look on his face, it probably felt out of place there.  
"Okay, I'm getting it."  
"Thank God, we can go now - you know, you are a lot worse than my sister. She'd be gone for three hours and I'd have five panic attacks when she was gone." Benny said as he took off the jacket and then tosses it to Ettoreo, next he went back into the changing room and took the dress pants and dark red, dress shirt off. Then he threw it to the same man and started to get his jeans on, wow... they felt really snug.  
Next to what he was wearing, Jesus.

 

"Alright, try this on." The Italian man said as he walked over and gave him a set of different clothing.  
"What, why?" Benny asked, catching the clothes before they hit the floor, he didn't have been get to put his shirt back on! - "I thought we had what we needed?!"  
"I have what I need, you don't."  
"I hate you." Benny groaned under his breath as he undressed himself again, just to dress himself back up. He had learned that it was easier to just go with it and not fight it, unless you had a chance to fight - which he did not and apparently he needed this suit; which he would like to argue on how much he /didn't/ need this suit and could easily go there in khakis and a t-shirt. But Ettoreo had claimed that you must be formal or else... you don't get to come in.  
Or he could not go at all.

But his sister would force him to go because it was her way of having fun. Out, moving around and doing things, making memories. She loved to make memories for the both of them.  
But he didn't like memories because it will just be more to mourn over...

And damm, there goes his thoughts, wondering into dark places, places where they don't belong...  
"Give me a white one."

"You need some color in your life, whenever I look at you, all I see is black and white." Ettoreo complained as he passed a white shirt through after taking the dark blue one from him, and Benny was silent for a moment, putting the shirt on and buttoning it slowly.  
"My life used to be yellow, a bit of blue and green. But eventually, everything faded out into red. And then to black and white, that's why I look the way I do." And perhaps that was the closest Ettoreo would ever come to the truth of the sibling's past because why would he ever want to share it with a stranger? He wouldn't want to. It's none of their business and they do not need to go poking around for it.

 

"Poetic." Ettoreo commented when Benny stepped out in a medium grey suit with a white dress shirt, and his hands were in the pockets, he did not like having his hands hanging from his side's for whatever reason, it made him feel useless and really stupid.  
And he likes hiding his hands, they were scarred.  
"Thanks." Benny replied sarcastically as he shrugged his shoulders, it fit nice, it was loose, it looked good and he just wanted to go and meet up with his sister, they'd probably get something to eat after this and not eating for a whole day, it sure can make you hungry. If you weren't used to... going two week without food. And at that time, it called for that... he was sure that he never purposely starve himself...

 

And yet, that was a lie... oh well.  
"I like it, can we go now?" Yes, Benny would now like to stuff his face full of delicious Italian food. And yes, that could be used to describe many different things, but in Benny's case, it was really food.

And if Ettoreo tried to come up with another reason as to why they had to stay here, "I'm hungry." The man started to complain as he stood there with sagged shoulders and a grumbling stomach. It was apparently loud enough for the Italian guide to here and his eyes widened in surprise before he signed and motioned for him to go get dressed, "Fine, fine. Get dressed, we can leave now." Whoever anyone said he could leave a store when he was done shopping, he always felt like a little kid excited for toys.

Leaving a shop (which he feared greatly), was the best thing in the world to him and he smiled as he turned and went back into the changing room, "Yay." He said to himself.  
Then he quickly got back into his normal clothes and trotted out to Ettoreo, but... he did have one request, should he be required to go to the masquerade and dance with women (he knew how to dance, every single kind of dance. But... just because he knew how, doesn't mean he liked to.) and it he needed to hold their hands, he was going to get some gloves, perhaps a tie and then the most important thing when going to a party, a masquerade mask.

A black and white one... perhaps.

~

"Gloves and a tie?" Ettoreo asked, almost as if it was the most bizarre thing he had ever heard come from his mouth. Which there was more things Benny could say that were weirder if you thought that was weird.  
Living with a family made him weird, growing up with his father made him weird, there were a lot of things about Benny that wouldn't be considered 'normal', but 'normal' didn't know how to defend themselves in cause they were attempting to be killed.

But this was his definition of normal, and there was only his normal with himself. Oh, and back to the conversation, the only way to win this little discussion, was with a fact (that was a lie).

 

"I'm a germaphobe, I don't want to know what those woman had touched." Benny said, allowing a bit of heat to come into his words as he turned himself just a bit to glance at the Italian man.

Who was carrying the bags that Benny refused to carry himself, "Okay, fine." There was a silence between them as they walked along, heading to the cafeteria to get themselves some food, a text was sent to his little sister and Luciano about where their meeting place would be.  
Hopefully Luciano didn't like shopping like his sister did, then they'd be waiting for a very long time. She would drag him everywhere and decide on what to buy and what not to buy.

She could practically bring all of Italy home if she had her way, but Benny would track her down, tell her now and then drag her back to the hotel with a minimal amount of Italian trinkets.  
"But why the tie?" He asked, choosing a spot outside of an Italian Subway. Benny glanced to it and then back to Ettorei, almost commenting what was on his mind because... really? They had this in Denver and he wasn't really a fan of sandwiches, but right now he was, unfortunately...

 

"I dunno..." the man shrugged lightly, it was a very good question in which he did not have the answer too, which was then rather unfortunate because not having an answer... was, well... dumb.

 

"I'll still get it, I was just curious." And with that, the man was walking off to get them someone to eat, he didn't even know what Benny liked. How rude of him not to ask!  
Yeah, he'd actually eat anything by now and it was likely that his guide realised that. Good for him, he could observe things.

 

~

 

"And then we accidentally dropped the cat in there and he was man, I'd be mad too if I was dropped in a bath tub of various paints." Ettoreo said, a small grin playing on his face as he took another bite of his sandwich.  
And for thirty minutes, they had been going back and forth with friendly debates and Ettoreo was telling him about his adventures as a kid, he dropped his own cat in a bathtub if pain that him and Luciano had filled up, just because they wanted to be 'paint monsters' - as in; appear assorted colors and run around to paint the walls.  
They didn't actually get to do that because his mother came in just in time, only to let the cat run out and dirty up a few hallways and bedrooms. The two children were grounded after that.

And Benny smiled and he laughed and he shook his head because childhoods... we're the best time - just... you were so carefree back then and you could have all the fun you wanted.  
Childhood was one of the best times... But now...

The smile gradually disappeared from his face as he thought about what being an adult meant. Ettoreo noticed the change in his demeanor and he too fell silent, though he wasn't thinking, he was waiting for Benny to spill his problems, he was the kind of man to do that. At least when the time came, so they sat there for a few moments, the both of them silent.  
One of them waiting and the other one thinking about where the time went, while he had spent all his time wanting to be an adult and doing his own thing, now he was regretting what he lost and wishing he could go back to being a kid again... it wasn't possible.  
All he could do was mourn it.

 

And he was going to ask Ettoreo how he felt about it, parting his lips to speak to him. When some man came up and put a hand on Ettoreo's shoulder. Making them man jump and turn his attention from Benny and to the man, the same nervous and afraid posture coming to him as he saw the man.

"Who are you?" Benny asked, a slight warning coming to his tone as he looked at the man, hazel eyes, blonde hair, sharp jaw and well build who honestly did not like the man interrupting him.  
When he didn't get a reply, when the man started to talk to Ettoreo and purposely ignore Benny, was when he got up with his hands curled into fists. This man did not take kindly to people ignoring him.  
And nearly at the same time, Ettoreo was pull to his feet.

The blonde man glanced to Benny and put a (huge) hand on his shoulder, shoving him back and into the chair that almost tipped over. And the anger was clear on his face as he moved to stand up, "No, no! Stop." Ettoreo said as he got in between them and stopped Benny from getting up, "Don't leave me." The one sitting down, growled out, grabbing Ettoreo's wrist as if he was attempting to make sure he wouldn't leave.

 

"I'm sorry, it's okay - I'll be back." But he didn't know that, Mario was angry and he wasn't sure that he would actually be returning...


	21. Chapter 21

Yes... he has been forced to sit down and watch as Ettoreo walked off with this man. His shoulders were tense and he was trying very hard not to look over his shoulder at Benny, in a pleading way.  
He was afraid for his life.

And nothing goes on without him knowing. Benny sat there for a moment and watched them walk away before he got up quickly and started after them, quickly adopting a relaxed posture and he was relaxed because he was a detective and he knew what he was doing, he had trailed people many times before for long amounts of time and they hadn't even noticed him.

Why was he doing this? Why did he not just let things work themselves out? Because... he had seen that man in the parking lot when they arrived, and he swore (though he hadn't really been paying attention), he saw the man across from the store they had been in. And then in a different 'restaurant'... this was not normal.

He was going to find out what was going on with that man and Ettoreo at least, perhaps the man had a debt to pay off. Or maybe it was linked to the mafia.  
Why? After all of these years? Why now when you had different times to do it and you picked now?  
Maybe they were waiting for the family to fall apart, maybe they were waiting for the weak link to show himself so they could kill him, or take him and use him to control the family that would do anything to get their son back.

Or maybe... they had just been in hiding, regaining their strength and now... they have the numbers they want and they are taking revenge, starting with the youngest and torturing him in every possible way.  
So maybe his mind was a bit darker than he let on, they is what also comes from living with the family he did and living the life he lived. Your mind would be as dark as his was.

 

Prepared and expecting the worst. Benny absently minded-ly reached out and grabbed a count that was hanging from a rack outside of a store, surprisingly, no one saw him and the slipped the coat on with ease, continuing on after the two men at a safe distance.  
Making sure he kept his head down - also being aware of what was around him. Just to make sure they didn't notice he was following them, and also making sure that no one knew he took the jacket.

 

~

 

"Black and purple? Or dark blue and grey?" Ari asked as she looked at both of the dresses, and my... they were very beautiful. She has never been able to dress up with fancy. It was rather expensive to act like you were rich even though you weren't. She would love to add some more dresses, Victorian style, that is. Something that poofed out...  
She also wanted something that hugged her body... well, not extremely huggy... just... enough to make her feel right. But her brother always wanted something in between, so it was always something in between.

But now... he did not have a control on what she was supposed to wear. This was her night to have fun to make memories and hold onto them for a very long time, she could not wait for tonight and the look that was on her face as Luciano led her into a store that had gowns just for these types of dances... And every thing was so beautiful... except, there was one that really stood out to her.

A dress that had dark purple and white decorations at the bottom, on the sleeves as well. Black was the other color and it was rather poofy, but it was beautiful and she was just staring at it for whatever reason, imagining what she'd look like in it.  
"Do you like that one?" Luciano asked as he looked over her shoulder, at the dress and then turned his attention back to the girl who was still thinking about it.

 

"It's beautiful." Pretty much her way of saying 'yes'. But she couldn't just say that she liked it, she really, really liked it.  
"Do you think..." she paused a moment, knowing how silly this question would be to ask, it shouldn't really matter to anyone, but... it mattered to her and she wanted Luciano's honest opinion, on what he thought of her and the dress... something she really wanted and (dangerously) hoped for.  
"Do you think Ettoreo would like it?" Ari asked, starting again, and she felt her throat tightening, her chest contradicting and she swore she had her head in her throat, barely able to get the words past her lips.

Luciano glanced to her for a moment, a strange look on his face before he looked at the dress and a smile came to his face, a fond one - as if he could already figure out things before she could. Maybe the question was something that made him smile, maybe he heard the hope in her voice and he knew that there was.  
"He will, so long as he doesn't have to wear it."

 

And Arizona exhaled slowly, her own smile coming and she felt happy, she felt a little bit safer... now that she might have a chance to dance with Ettoreo as long as he was going, she was sure he would - he promised her a dance and she took those promises to heart...  
He wouldn't just blow it off as if it was nothing, he invited her, he became her friend... so it was likely that he was coming... right?

 

"I like this one." She said softly to the other man, stroking the fabric of the dress and smiling slightly. She raised her head up and looked to the man who was smiling at her because he knew something that she didn't.  
"Do you like him?" Came the question as Luciano moved past her and took the beautiful gown off the rack, holding it and giving it a once over, "Are you sure it will fit?"  
As in, he didn't want it to be small, sometimes it could be misjudged - they'd make it work, should it be too small or too big.

And Arizona was acting as if she didn't even hear what Luciano had said. Or she really didn't, because she was walking around the store and looking for another dress, well... she was looking at other dresses and having a thoughtful look on her face.  
"This one..." she mumbled to herself as she touched a dark red one, it didn't look anything like the one she was getting, it was so much different... the red and black was beautiful on it...

 

She checked the size and smiled slowly, yes... she was getting this one. Even if no one was going to wear it.  
Arizona took it off of the rack and laid it across her arm, then she walked back over to where Luciano was waiting for her.

 

He looked confused to see she was holding a different dress, "Did you change your mind?" He was a man if many questions, extremely curious. Exactly like Benny, just like him.  
And it made her smile because Luciano reminded her of her brother, the only brother she had and the one person who would care for her more than anyone else in the world. That was good a good person right there, and she wished she could return that. But she couldn't.

And besides, a little white lie never hurt anyone, did it?  
"I can't decide between these two, would it be okay...?" She asked, and yes it was a slight lie, but Benny wasn't the only one who was a good actor.

Luciano could not see through her lie and he smiled pleasantly to the girl who was overly kind to nearly everyone she met, "Sì, I suppose so. Some gift from Italy will do America just fine."

And now, she had what she needed.

 

~

 

"Mario- please, where are we going?" Ettoreo hissed out as he felt himself being dragged along side the man, he had a tight grip on the man's wrist so he wouldn't run off back to Benny and he was kinda annoyed at that, that man hated to be touched, but perhaps he hated it when someone took his guide away from him.

But the last time Ettoreo checked to see if Benny was behind them, he was just sitting there and staring after them, a pure look of hatred on his face and it was no directed at the guide, it was directed at Mario and just looking at the angered face...  
It sent chills through Ettoreo and there was just some kind of determination in those eyes that made him look forward and just walk. Almost as if he was trusting the Felocife to come after them and help him before anything happened and trusting someone was a mistake.

But there was something about Benny that said 'you can trust me, I just can't trust you'. And there was no reason... why Ettoreo should listen to that part of him, but he did.  
He did.

He walked and he didn't look back, he didn't fight Mario and he kept his heart in his throat.  
Hope was a very dangerous thing, but most people were attracted to danger. Even when they didn't even know it, they always out themselves in danger when they hoped, which is why Ettoreo tried not to hope  
Sometimes, you couldn't help it, hope would just randomly find you, especially when you needed it... just to have it ripped from your hands again, just to swear you'd never hope again. And then hope just comes along again, and they cycle repeats itself.

 

"Ah- ow..." Ettoreo whimpered out as they turned sharply and the two of them were now outside.  
Wow, they could move quick. That or time just flies by when you aren't paying attention to anything. The younger man winced as he felt the press of the wall behind him, scrapping though his shirt just a bit - his golden eyes looked to the wall for a moment before he was staring at Mario, the Auditores wouldn't turn him in! Would they?

Oh look, there was his heart in his throat again; "What do you want?" His voice was hoarse and it was because of the fear he felt. This man was known to be violent, this man was known as the son of Van-Durven.  
Ettoreo cried out loudly when he felt a sharp pain near his side. Right where the location of his kidney were - "Fuh, ah..." he cried out as the pain started to run up and down his left side - it wasn't that Ettoreo couldn't take a punch (he could), it was just Mario hit as if he was trying to break a rock.

And he had no idea what that felt like, at least not until now and it was so hard to breath - Mario soon took a step back and let Ettoreo drop to the ground, cries of pain coming from his mouth as both of his hands pressed to his side, as if he could stop the pain. But touching it made it worse. So now, sobs were nearly coming from his mouth as his breath was completely gone...  
"Stay out of business that isn't yours."  
And it was hard to not know what he was talking about, but any 'business' that involved Bianca, was his.

 

But Ettoreo could offer no response as he laid there, gasping for breath. Purposely letting Mario leave him where he was.

 

Hope was a worthless thing indeed.  
At least; he thought that - all until he heard the door open and Mario start to complain. A few thumps, a few grunts and struggle was all it took, to prove him wrong.


	22. Chapter 22

Was following after Ettoreo a good idea? Just to come across the man who took him? Probably not.  
Not if he didn't know how to fight.

 

While he walked, he took a cap and put that on, lowering his head and raising his shoulders up just a bit so no one would look at him and see his face. That was the last thing he needed.  
Benny tilted his head up just a bit and watches Mario drag Ettoreo around the corner and out the door, to the back. He couldn't just run out there, but what he could do, was wait a couple-few seconds and then go in and start kicking äss, äss that deserved it.

Benny stopped and waited there for fifteen seconds, then he turned and left the building, opening the door, he stepped out and came face to face with the ugly brute who took Ettoreo outside, where was he?  
And when he couldn't see someone, that was making him a bit panicked. Hopefully he was okay, okay meaning... alive and breathing. That would be a start - but the man could not see his guide.

 

Benny did not waste time asking questions, why would he? Mario didn't not let him ask questions earlier, so it was likely that he wouldn't let him ask questions now.  
"Why the hell are you out here?! This is a restricted-" he didn't get to finish his sentence. There was no reason he should remember all of this stuff, it was an extremely long time ago... he was a young kid and he was distracted with anything that came his way...

And he was a detective; he shouldn't have any sort of training, but he did. He knew it all, every kind of fighting style there was. He knew them, yes. But that did not mean he had perfected them, to perfect something, it would take years and years of your life to learn it.

And while Benny didn't know what the future would hold for him - his father seemed to have an idea, perhaps a paranoid one. Maybe one that he made up with his mind, but he did know that he wouldn't be there to protect them from the nightmares.  
So there was only one person he could trust to do so; that was his son. He rarely cared if he deprived him of his childhood, to keep your life, sacrifices are required. But never from your family, you never hurt your family and you make sure they stay safe and protected.

Even if you have to betray their trust, make them hate you... you still look after them.  
They are more important than you are.

 

And some how... with those simple set of instructions... he managed to keep only one person of his family alive. He couldn't do anything else to protect them and he was telling himself that he didn't try hard enough, he didn't listen to his father well enough.  
His family was broken. And now he was striving to make sure the others were alive - that's the reason why he was not going to find himself a family, that was why he wasn't ever going to have friends, why he was never going to have a lover. Why he was never going to take care of another person and care for them...

The truth is... sometimes you cannot help it. And there's no way you can ever help falling in love, starting to care... unless you can convince yourself it's not what you want.

 

He did not give anyone time to react, not even himself because this was a reflex to him. Most of the times, Benny did think with his fists instead of his head, because it was his reflex, playing offense; was something he was very skilled at.

His fist came back and a shot forward, aiming in a straight line and he capped the man in the jaw, and it hurt. His hand did, but he didn't stop, a right hook to the nose and then a elbow strike to his jaw.  
And then there was a burning pain to his stomach, yet Benny did not react to it. He wouldn't let himself dare to react to it, he didn't want anyone to know the pain he could be in.

"You fücked with the wrong person." Benny growled out as Mario's eyes connected to his, and then Benny quickly twisted the man around and slammed his face against the wall while he was still stunned from his attacks. Then, he took a step back, letting the man fall to the ground with a thud, then he was out cold.

He had to physically stop himself from starting to kick the man over and over because of the pain he was feeling in his stomach, and because sometimes he couldn't control his anger when someone abducted his guide and then touched him, acting rude for no reason. He hated people who were like that, then again - some people considered him like that.  
Yes, he could be rude. But he wasn't overly rude like that, Benny was aware that people had feelings, but they either need to steel them and ignore him... or they shouldn't judge until they've been in someone's shoes.

He knew he should practice what he preached... He should, but that didn't feel too good to him. Thinking about the suffering that others went through... that was horrific.  
Benny raised his head just a bit when he heard a grunt of pain, and it did not come from Mario, it came from around the corner.

"Ettoreo?" The man asked as he took a couple steps forward and looked around the corner, soon finding the Italian man withering on the ground in pain, looking like he was about ready to give himself a heart attack, "Whoa - easy now. I'm here."  
"Where did you... learn how to hit like that?" Ettoreo wheezed out as he raised his head up and looked through his dark strands of hair, his golden eyes full of amusement and pain.

And it was all Benny could do to not laugh in relief.

 

~

 

"Two masks?" Luciano asked, as if it was like the most absurd thing in the world. Well, yeah - two dresses, two masks. Correct?  
Though she wasn't going to wear the other one - she was going to wear the black and purple one, her mind has already made that decision for her and she... was not going to go any deeper into her thoughts. Instead, she was going to reply to Luciano like a normal person would.

"Yeah- I can't wear purple with red, now can I? Those two colors don't match, especially when it is not apart of the outfit, I thought you'd know that." She teased the artist while walking past him into the masquerade shop, mainly the accessories were here and she wanted a purple and silver one... maybe black could replace the silver. Or whatever they had would be fine...

She also wanted a dark red, maybe orange and yellow colored mask for the other dress. That would go nice together, and she knew it would look perfect on this one person she knew...  
"Sì, you are right. I suppose." Luciano said as he followed after her. And for the moment, he was carrying both of the dresses. Only so she could look around without having to knock anything over, which was why he was still up at the front and raising his voice just a bit so that Arizona could hear him.

She smirked as she picked out a silvery mask with little purple diamonds, black, purple and grey feathers making up its decor. Yes, this one was it.  
"You suppose." She then called over her shoulder, a fond smile on her face as she continued to search around for that perfect red mask that would go exceptionally well with the dress.

 

Black, red, orange and yellow. The beautiful colors of fire, that was always wild and untamed, it just... reminded her of this one person, though it didn't seem to fit her completely. It was apart of her, if defiantly was.  
Arizona smiled softly as she held both of the masks and and then made her way back over to Luciano, holding both of them up quickly and then turned around to the cashier.

"Where did Ettoreo tell us to meet him?" Ari asked the tall man as she gathered what she had, only carrying one dress because Luciano had insisted that he was the one who was going to carry it.  
He was so sweet, but he could also be annoying. Still, if that was what he wanted to do - she wasn't stopping him.

The man shifted with the bags and then raised his phone up to check, "He said that they were supposed to be by Subway."  
"Supposed?" Ari asked, okay... that did not sound too good... they were there, right?

 

Luciano glanced up from his phone slowly, then he stopped completely, Arizona almost continued walking without him, then she saw that he stopped and she did too, turning around to face him, she made a face.  
"What is it?" And suddenly, her arms were filled with the bags he claimed he wanted to hold himself.

"H-hey!" But then the blonde man was walking off, and for some reason, Arizona decided not to follow him. To just stand there and watch - there was a group of men standing in front of a table and Luciano headed right over there and stopped to talk to them, it took about ten seconds. Ten seconds, breaking her brother's record - for him to get punched in the face.

And all Ari could do, was gasp and take a step back.


	23. Chapter 23

Arizona cried out as she turned away from the fight, though she really wanted to go over there and beat the living hell out of all of them, but Luciano could handle it. He showed that after a couple of second, retaliating quickly and punching the same man in the face, and then back fisted another - of course a few people were getting up to see what the commotion was about.

A few were on their phones and speaking rapidly - to what Arizona assumed to be the police here. The police would not be a good thing, especially if they attempted to run her and her brother's IDs, they would be found out and she knew a secret identity was every thing to her brother. It was to her too! She would do anything to keep her double life (triple in this case), away from everyone else. Even her brother didn't know the life she lived.

Yeah... she was training to be a CIA agent all this time, she kinda already was one. But she did not want Benny to find that out, he would freak. Here was not so good place for him to freak - anyone could hear.  
And maybe it was time to tell her brother every thing about herself, what she had been doing, at least when they got back to Denver.

 

Where her 'boss' could explain everything to Benny, two years ago was when she enrolled, three months ago was when she was fully ready. But they wanted one more year of training before they sent her out into the field and that was why she always left the house at any excuse and do what she had to do, that's why she was so good at covering her tracks.

By picking a few things up from her brother and also learning it from the seasoned agents.  
The seasoned agents were nice, or... most of them were. She wished that she was the lucky person who was paired with the nicer ones. Instead, she had been paired with a thirty-five year old, half Arabic man who was as rude as hell.

He would constantly ride up on her, yell at her and tell her to do things she was already going to do.  
He was just constantly watching her and pushing her to do her best and even better, he was just there to see her break in half. And his name was Layth, meaning lion.

Perhaps a really mean, old and ugly lion. Ugly as in, his personality. The man wasn't ugly himself, he was rather handsome.  
He had chilling light brown eyes, and black hair to go along with that - he wasn't like a lion. At least he didn't look like one, he had a scar. A couple of them, one from the corning of his mouth that went to his cheek.

He also had a bullet scar on his shoulder, Ari had seen it when he was training shirtless (thank God, not with her - because he was ruthless and very dangerous. And he held nothing back when he was fighting. It was rumored that he even killed someone on accident). But then again, Ari was smarter than that; should he have killed someone, he would be put in prison and possibly given the death sentence.

 

And now you know why her instincts were screaming at her to join the fight and get Luciano away from them before he police showed up. So she did, most of the time, she listened to her instincts and they were nearly always right. She was trusting them on this one by setting the bags down - her hand wrapping around a mask. Arizona had no idea why she did it, she just did. She put the red colored mask on, there was no reason why she did it. Perhaps to hide from men, what they'd look for, should they ever come back, looking for her and Luciano. 

And the next thing she knew, she running over to aid the artist in his fight; and if she could say, he was get good at fighting. He moved like a dancer and hit like a thirty thousand pound truck would.

Ari positioning herself and picking her target right before she lashed out and caught the man in the kidneys where she repeated that, only with a roundhouse kick, not even giving him time to react.

Because these men had a special style of fighting, one she hadn't seen before and one she didn't want to be at the other end of.  
The next man (there were five), she hit in the jaw and then kicked him where it hurts the most, once he was down on his knees, she kneed him in the face so he was momentarily stunned.

Then she back fisted another man, ducked under a second's arm, grabbed it and then bent it backwards. A smile of satisfaction came to Ari's face as she shoved the man forward into another one, and then the fight was done, just like that.

 

Suddenly, long fingers wrapped around her arm and adrenaline was still pumping in her veins as she turned and aimed for their face, it was stopped by another fist wrapping around hers.  
"Ah! Luci-?" He didn't say anything, all he did was tighten his grip on her and then start to pull her away, "Get the suits, were going."

Yeah, for the first time, she noticed the bags that belonged to Ettoreo and her brother, containing the suits that they were going to wear to the masquerade ball, she reached over and grabbed them before running off after Luciano, he apparently sensed the threat of the police like she did.  
And before she got any further, she reached up and pulled the mask off, shoving it in the bag, she kept running.

 

And yes, the thought of her brother and Ettoreo coming back and releasing that their stuff was gone, was also in the back of Ari's mind. But she'd send a text to her brother to inform him that they had got their stuff, how Luciano knew this was their stuff, she would ask him about that later as he would (she was sure) ask her how she learned how to fight like that. It was normal for people to question things, her brother questioned everything and everyone and he could careless if they thought he was annoying, all he claimed to be doing was gathering information so he could be prepared for whatever was thrown his way.

And that was a smart way of working it. But an easy way to make more enemies than friends.  
I suppose in Benny's perspective; enemies were better than friends because he couldn't careless if they died like he could his friends. He didn't have nearly a as dangerous life as his young sister did, sure his could be dangerous on occasions. But hers was always dangerous.

 

"I'll tell them to meet us at the car." Was all Luciano said after they had left the building and had slowed to a walk. And to her surprise, he did not question her once as they walked over to the car and stopped there to put the bags in, the both of them silent - but there was a sense of gratitude from him and yet... no words were spoken still.

 

~

 

"Why are you laughing?" He didn't exactly say it in a full sentence because he was out if breath (still) and Benny was just sitting there, chuckling - because of what Ettoreo had said or he was laughing because of the way he was spread out and gasping for breath.

But he was actually very curious of where Benny learned to fight like that, though he didn't see the fight the noises were enough to help him realise who was getting hit and who wasn't - it wasn't every day that someone could knock ppMario Van-Durven out cold.

"I surprised him, got a few good aimed punches... And then hit his head against the wall." Benny explained as he wrapped his arms around Ettoreo's underarms and slowly pulled him to his feet, also trying to be gentle - trying not to cause the man anymore pain than he was already in.  
Then, he had the other lean on him as he turned the both of them and started to take him inside - both of them passing Mario and Benny sent a glare in the unconscious man's direction. And for a minute, Ettoreo couldn't decided if the man was still alive or not, he looked dead.. very dead and wouldn't that be a relief!

But not now, that would only cause more problems, "Did you kill him?" The Italian man wheezed out, it was apparently still very hard to get breath in. Hell, to even move it hurt, he winced with every step and he was limping, trying anyway to feel better.

Then he felt Benjamin's eyes on him for a split second before said man answered his question, "No, I don't think so. I might've given him amnesia." And no, Benny would not count anything he did to this man as a loss, but killing him on purpose/accident would not be a good idea. It wouldn't be good for him or his sister, so he had to control his strength and make sure he didn't hurt the man worse than what was needed.

 

Then Ettoreo fell silent as they got back inside the mall, the both of them almost turned back to where they had left the clothing, then it was decided that they wouldn't be heading that was because there were Italian police officers over there.  
"Wait-" Ettoreo said as he stopped walking, he had felt his phone buzzing in his pocket, hopefully it was Luciano, whatever he was going to say would be fine - he only wanted to know that he and Arizona was safe and away from whatever had happened over there.

 

Benny paused and looked down to where Ettoreo was reaching, waiting for him to get his phone so that they could make their next decision, "I got you." Came Benny's comforting (like) voice, shifting his position so Ettoreo could hold his phone without worrying that he was going to trip over himself. Though it did out pressure on his side, it wasn't unbearable.

The Italian muttered a 'thank you' in his language as he quickly check his phone and was filled with relief that it was Luciano, who was informing him of their location and where the bags were, though... what happened was clearly something that he had forgot. Only because he liked to tell people in person, claiming it made more sense that way.

And actually, he was right - it was easier to hear it and understand it, and than read it. If you read it in your head, it wouldn't make sense, but saying it out loud would make more sense to you.  
"Okay; they're in the parking lot with the car. I know a different way around." Ettoreo said as he put his phone back into his pocket and started forward once more, quickly, the pressure on his side decreased and he felt a whole lot better. Now limping (almost walking), beside Benny. Telling him where to go - back to the first floor, and they had to take the elevator to get there.

He was sure the male sibling did not want to go near the police with blood on his hands. Quite literally.  
Perhaps it was from Mario, maybe from himself. It was such a small detail, it didn't really matter at all.

 

Soon enough, both of the men were out of the mall and now Ettoreo had stopped using Benny for support. He didn't need it anymore, therefore, he could walk just fine with a heavy limp and the threat of falling over.  
But the man who came to rescue him was still there, in case he should need him again.

Now Benny was his Prince Charming, while Luciano was Benny's. It was amusing for whatever reason, now he was thinking that everyone had a prince charming, regardless of age or what situation they had been in. Someone who rescues you, they should become your knight in shining armour, but there was no way, Ettoreo would be drooling over his knight.

 

"Hey! What happened to you?" Ari asked as she trotted over to them, grabbing Ettoreo slightly and looking where his hand was, then to his face with concern. Suddenly, she was glaring at her brother because he had the guiltest look on his face, "Benjamin!"  
And this time, Ettoreo couldn't help but laugh at the two of them.

 

"I didn't do it! I swear!" Benny said as he raised his hands up in a sign of temporary surrender.  
"That's what they all say." And with that, Ari was leading Benny to the car where he was now panting for breath and in even more pain because that was just too much for him.  
Benny muttered something under his breath as he followed after, going up in the front seat with Luciano so they could swap stories.

By the looks of it, everyone had a blast at the mall.


	24. Chapter 24

"God... look at this." Ari muttered as she looked at the ugly bruise that was on the man's side.  
It was black and blue and covered a good section of it, and he said he was fine; when he was limping like an eighty year old man who had to take a shít.

"You are such a liar," Ari mumbled as she took the cream he had offered her, she was the one who insisted she take a look at it after they had swapped stories, and she could tell be was rather impressed that she could fight three guys at once and not get hit. But there was also a sense of... unease coming from him, though she didn't ask why he was uneasy with her telling the story on how she kicked those guys into next week.

She didn't even get to ask Luciano what happened, why that one man punched him and why he decided to retaliate. Normally, fighting was not something she quickly resorted to.  
She preferred to talk it out with people before she went around and start hitting people, but her brother was completely different... he usually hits things that offend him.

A 'shoot first and ask questions later' type of guy, so was Layth - only he was a 'kill now - ask questions never'.  
Which is why you should never cross some man who acted like he knew everything, disagree with him and he'll break your arm and change your mind. Hell, if Benny ever found out about this man... she'd love to see the fight between them.

Because they were so different and he didn't mix well with people who were different. He just didn't know much about them, and he feared the unknown greatly, and if she could help him - she would. But he didn't exactly want to over come this fear.  
You can't make something do what it doesn't want to, it's nearly impossible - Benny didn't realise it, but he did not want to get over his fear of the unknown. He liked to be prepared, always.

And he couldn't just 'go' with the 'flow', he's different like that. He likes to make his own course and change what he can while fighting against what he cannot, even if it won't make a difference.  
Even if it will barely change anything. Such a stubborn man.

 

Just like the one who was laid out in front of her, shirtless, olive skin, toned back... all spread out; stretched lazily like a cat while his black hair spread out nearly everywhere on the sheets. Or at least how far it could reach.

 

She admired the muscles on him, and yes, it was rather hard for her to keep focus on the task at hand.  
"No, I told you I was feeling fine. You're the one who wanted me to take my shirt off and lay on the bed so you could admire me." Ettoreo said, tilting had s head just a bit so his golden eyes were resting on her - a mischievous sparkle in them as he looked her over.

And then a fondness came to his eyes as her hair fell on the other side of her neck, when she tilted her head to think about what she was going to do with the bruise on this crazy-man's side.  
Finally, a slight look of remorse came over his face and making his body slump slightly in defeat as his eyes turned away from her to once more stare at the wall. Now a dead look in his eyes as he quickly shut off the memories that were circling his brain, the thoughts and the plans... everything that he hoped would happen... all the while he was still figuring out every outcome for actually retaliating.

 

Mario, those others in the mall... hell... that was only the beginning and it seemed a lot. But no one knew how grateful he was that something pressured Ari to wear the mask, if even one of them had taken a glance at her face... Ettoreo was sure everything he was planning for was ruined... everything.  
Those men, in the mall... they were highly trained. Maybe they weren't using all of the skills they had on Luciano, maybe that's how she beat them...

Or maybe she knew how to fight and would whenever her life, or someone else's life was in danger.

 

Or maybe he should stop thinking and just relax, he felt safe enough in her brother's hands. He felt even safer in hers.  
Ettoreo titled his head a bit when he heard her open the cap, only to watch her. Seriously, the pain had faded away, but he still limped because that seemed to help keep the pain away - and for the fact that she insisted on checking it and then taking care of it, he was going to fück with her - because he didn't need her to take care of him...

But it did feel good to be cared for by someone, ever since he stopped visiting Bianca. He knew his adoptive family could care less about his well being and Luciano had better things to do...  
She did too, he guessed. But she didn't want to do them, here she was, treating to him - it was better than he could ever ask for.

 

Almost better, almost.

Ettoreo felt the cream touch his bruise and then he jumped and yelled out 'ow!', it didn't hurt at all. It was just funny to see Arizona have a mini heart attack by jumping back and yelping out.  
Laughing hurt, but it was worth it. The look on her face of shock, surprise and guilt - and then flat out annoyance and anger.

Perhaps he didn't think this through; he had just learned that she took down three, fully grown men, who worked for a mafia and had extreme skill. And she did it all for Luciano, maybe out of anger for him getting hurt. He didn't know why she did that, but he knew why she did this.

 

"Ugh! Åsshole!" She raised her palm up and slapped him a little bit on where his bruise was and in the middle of his back.  
Hell! That hurt! He was sensitive right there, and that's when the Italian man whimpered in pain and shifted his hand back and pressed it where her hand had hit him, "Okay, that actually hurt."

"I don't care, you know you deserved it." Arizona said as she nudged his hand away and then started to gingerly apply it onto his wound, making a slight noise under her breath as if she was still annoyed at what she did, May be even slightly embarrassed that she had fallen for it.  
Well... with that, the two fell silent again and he allowed her to put it on his wound without arguing back to what she wanted to do.

He obviously had to tell her that he wouldn't be there at the masquerade, or he wouldn't be there right away... yes, he was not going to miss his only window to stop this, everyone else here was too much of a coward to do anything. They wouldn't do anything at all, just letting this madness go on.

They were murderers with no blood on their hands, and tonight, Ettoreo was going to find himself redemption, in any way he can. No matter the cost, well... he was sure he couldn't lose Ari, she had just grown a whole lot closer to him than anyone ever has and if any of the Auditores found out. They would blame her and hurry up to kill her - though Ettoreo had a sense that Benny would be there to say something about it.

 

Ettoreo sucked in a light breath between his teeth and then turned his eyes to look at Arizona, quickly jumping in it instead of prolonging it - "I won't be at the masquerade party, not right away at least..." he paused a moment before continuing on, "There's something I need to take care of; but I'll defiantly be there... so, save a dance for me?" And he allowed a bit of hope to creep in his voice - only to show he was very serious about dancing with the girl.

Ari smiled at him and stroked his hair for a moment, something that he enjoyed (which she had no idea about), "Yeah, I'll make sure there's a dance left for you." Ettoreo refused the smile as he shifted slightly, wincing at the pain in his side before his golden eyes looked into her green ones, "Grazie. Very much, amore."

 

~

 

"Let me see what you got." Arizona said as she trotted over to where Benny was 'brooding' on the bed and staring what was inside of the bag like he hated it with all of his... 'hate powers'.  
"If I had my way, it would be black." Benny informed as he raised his head and then passed the bag to his sister so she could look at what he was supposed to wear the masquerade that he really didn't want to go to. But he would to keep an eye on his sister who was bound to get herself in trouble.

That was just how he viewed his sister, or someone else would get her in trouble - he was still having mixed feelings about the fight that Luciano happened to tell him about, which his sister successfully hurt three men without even getting a scratch on her.

Suspicious much? Yeah, he wanted to shower her with all the questions he had, wanted to tell her how angry he was with what she did. She could've gotten hurt, but then again she didn't. So he supposed that was okay... sorta.

He just didn't like not knowing.  
"Oh, grey jacket, pants and white shirt. Also... no tie or mask." Oh, yeah. He did forget about that, oh well.  
But masks were mandatory at a masquerade party.

And then, there was a friendly little knocking at the door that grabbed both of their attentions, Arizona stood set the bag down and happily walked over to the door, opening it and smiling when she saw Luciano standing there with a golden masquerade mask, "Ettoreo informed me that Benjamin does not have a mask, he can use one of mine." Then he offered the mask to his sister, who accepted it with a smile.

"Thank you! Very much." Luciano nodded to Ari before he left the two of them alone and she showed him the mask, "Looks like you're going after all, big brother." And he was not too happy about that.


	25. Chapter 25

 "Alright... let's put this on." He tilted his head up a bit and sighed through his nose lightly, trying to contain his annoyance at having her put the tie around his neck and tie it for him. He was sure he could've done it himself, though she insisted on doing it herself, claiming she had done it many times before for him. And it was true, at least until he learned how to do it himself, then he never let her do it again.

But tonight was apparently an exception. He wasn't annoyed that she was putting the tie on, he was annoyed that he was going to wear a mask through the whole night and he really hadn't gotten a nap in, but perhaps... he could sustain it because he was young.  
And because he could stay up for thirty-hours straight and not feel tired. But he could get very annoyed quickly, some drinks usually sober him up...

He was not an angry drunk, like you might expect. But he could be an emotional one, or a 'party one'. Most of the time, he was relaxed and just laying there... or sitting, and he'd just let it play through his system until he just couldn't care anymore, until he just stopped thinking, just stopped caring about everything. That's when he'd know that he was okay and he'd be ready to take on whatever anyone threw at him with a careless expression...

But tomorrow would've been hell to pay. Should he remember the events that happened when he was 'drunk'.  
He had always preferred the term 'under the influence' instead of drunk. His idea of drunk or 'a drunk', was someone who drank to much and was carelessly annoying and could have different mood swings at any time, that was his definition of drunk - and sure, some people might disagree with him. But that is their opinion and they should sure-as-shìt keep it to themselves or else he'd take that opinion and cram it up their äss.

 

"You're doing a lot of thinking." She commented, apparently she could tell when he was thinking. Claiming he had a far away look in his eyes, and it depends on what he was thinking about, but he would also be making faces.  
His was probably a light one, with a twinkle in his eyes and his mouth slightly quirked up in a smile.

"What?" He asked after a moment, taking a step back after she had finished smoothing out his jacket and fixing his tie. While he went to mess with the cuffs of his shirt, he honestly hated dressing up. It made him feel like he had to contain his inner self, dressing up made him feel like he was supposed to be someone else, other than himself.

Society said to be yourself, but not like that. Basically saying be a part of you, and not be the other parts of you.  
He'd like to kick society's äss. If that was even possible - he'd be doing it everyday.

 

"You, had your thinking faces on." She said as she turned away from him and walked to the desk, where the mask was. It look old, made out of metal and it had jagged edges, but he wasn't complaining.  
At least no one could see who he was, once she was close enough, he took the mask from her and slipped it over his face - trying very hard not to shiver because of how cold it was. Made of some type of metal... whatever it was made out of, it was cold. But it fit his face well and now he was a mystery.

"What were you thinking of?" She asked him, fixing his hair just a little bit and then stepping back to glance up at the man, "Things little girls shouldn't know about." Not really, she was not little, age wise. Her mental state was that of a young girl, excited about small things... But that was her, and she was perfect.

It also wasn't like she didn't already know everything 'grown up', she was one. But his thoughts were a bit too strong for this woman to know about - she'd shun him for his thoughts.  
And so that was another reason why he didn't want her to know about; calling her a little girl was just an excuse.

 

"Benjee." She raised her hand up and flicked him hard on the nose, making him scrunch it up and squeak as he tried to avoid it - "I am not a little girl."  
"Uh-huh, you know that on the inside you are, Z." 'Benjee' said as he buttoned a few buttons on his jacket and turned away from his sister to leave the room, "Sundown is soon, get dressed quickly so we can watch it." She was the one who begged him to watch it with her, the hotel had a balcony on the top floor that they were allowed to use if they wanted to, it had a great view of the setting sun. Which was told by the hotel owner's youngest child and their guide which had been a great help and which he was not too fond of that man, he was okay... he was okay.

But never good enough for his sister. No one would ever be and he swore he wouldn't ever be ready for the day when his sister found that person and left him, and those little thoughts made his heart ache...  
But it's bound to happen, he knows every thing she doesn't want him to... or, perhaps almost everything.

 

And by the time he had taken the elevator up to the top floor, he had another left to think about, other than the masquerade, keeping an eye on his sister and wondering about their guide.  
He closed the doors after himself Nd then walked over to the railing, his eyes roaming over the city and for a split second, he wondered what price was paid for it.

 

~

 

Benjamin didn't turn around the moment he heard the double doors opening behind him, instead... he waited for a moment until he heard the soft swishing of a gown, Benny then turned around and saw his sister; in a beautiful, Victorian styled dress.  
The top half was black and the bottom was deep purple with white designs, her hair was pulled up into a loose braid with strands escaping it, framing around her face which was covered by a silver and purple mask with black, purple and silver feathers. Bringing out her bright green eyes that sparkled and shone in the last lights of the day.

She looked absolutely beautiful and... for once he saw the grown woman that she was. It did kinda give him a longing, for when they were younger and she would run to his room for protection, or he'd help her kill a spider. Capture a butterfly, a bird, maybe even a mouse.  
He wished he could be that big brother again.

 

Arizona rubbed her wrists, looking down at the ground as she slowly walked over to her brother. Once she raised her head, he noticed an embarrassed look was in her eyes as she came to a stop in front of him. Waiting for what he had to say about her dress, because he would always joke about her over dressing for certain things.

"Ari, you look beautiful." Her brother softly, his grey and green eyes gentle behind his own mask, a smile was on his face as he looked her overp  
Her eyes widened when she heard the compliment come from his mouth. It wasn't often that he'd do it, but when he did... it was very special - just to be sure, she searched his eyes for the truth, a look of insecurity on her face... And it was plain as day, the truth in his words were showing in his eyes.

The girl smiled and moved forward to hug her brother tightly, it sure did mean a lot that he approved... just he was probably worried about all the men that might be staring at her...

Benny smiled brightly when his sister wrapped her arms him, he was quick to return the hug and pull his little sister close, supposing that she was glad for the compliment.  
The two siblings shifted just a bit so that they were facing the sunset, arms still around each other. His arm around her waist while his other one dropped off - both of her hands were still around his neck. But she found that to be harder, so she only had one arm around him.

The masquerade would be starting soon, but standing here and sharing this moment with his little sister was all he could ask for, just one more moment to enjoy the peace... And he was happy with it.

 

Arizona held her brother a bit tighter, just because she could (she also just like to hold things), "What would Tina be?" She asked Benny, resting her head on his shoulder and just looking out over the beauty of Italy. Though, before the man could ask what she meant, Arizona was already explaining, it had been a little sudden when she asked him that. And it wasn't likely that he'd understand what she was talking about, "When you said that I was wind, you were water and Ettoreo was fallen leaves... what would Tina be?" Yes, that's what she meant... Arizona was very fond of the way Benny had described each and everyone of them, it was beautiful.

 

That... he remembered when he told her that, just because... He felt like he had to get something off of his chest. She seemed to like it, as his sister was asking about it... But it had been so long, so very long... 

Benjamin had not heard his youngest sister speak about her older sister, maybe it was really hard for her; this might be a very big step and he was glad that Ari was finally talking about this woman.  
What would Tina be? He already had the answer, and it was one that would've fit his twin so nicely, he only had the answer because he had been thinking about the things his whole family would've been.

 

"The world." Benjamin said softly, his throat getting a bit tighter as he tried to talk, "Tina would be the world. Because she doesn't care who you are, what you have done. She will accept you and be the person for you. She is the person that holds us together." It couldn't be more true, and he knew it. Now he has lost the world, and he was trying to make his own world... so far he was only drowning and freezing in it.

Ari couldn't have said it better herself. So she hugged his side just a bit to give him comfort, letting him know that she heard what he said and she agreed with him completely.  
"We should be going." Benny muttered, but he honestly didn't want to leave just - he loved to watch the sunsets.

 

The door opened behind them, and Benny raised his head, turning around as he saw Ettoreo step out and look down at the ground, holding gloves in one hand and a mask in another, "May I?" He was asking the brother for some time alone with his sister, his only sister.  
And while he liked the way he asked, that did not make him appropriate.

But Benny still nodded and let go of his sister, stepping over to Ettoreo and taking the gloves that were offered to him.  
"Fifteen minutes. I'll meet you downstairs." He fist said to the Italian man, then he waved his sister goodbye and left the balcony, standing there for a second before sighing under his breath and leaving, placing a smidge of trust in this man to do right by his sister in the way he couldn't.

 

"Hey..." he said as he slowly walked up to her and took her hands in his, looking down at them for a moment before his golden eyes connect to hers and there was a soft smile here on her face with green eyes that were gentle and happy that he was here beside her.  
"I've always liked sunsets." Ettoreo commented, turning to what was left of the sun setting in the horizon and watching it while Arizona pressed herself beside him and sighed just a bit. Almost as if she wished that she didn't have to go back to America, but he promised he'd get her there. Alive.

 

"I do too... it's just erasing this day to start all over again... holding new promises for a new day. A new chance." She said softly, then watching the sun setting in his eyes.  
And all he did was smile.


	26. Chapter 26

"Just... make sure you're there... okay?" Ari asked as she reluctantly let go of Ettoreo's hands after he told her that she should probably be going, when she really didn't want to. She'd rather go with him, but he wasn't coming, not right away because there was some family issues he needed to take care of before he could join them.

And he could see how sad she was that he wasn't coming right away, he could also see the trust she was putting in him. It was easy for her to, but... this was a special kind of trust that she was giving to him, and he would not lose it. No one, could keep him from coming to the masquerade; because of the job he needed to do, and the woman he wanted to dance with.

"I promise I will be there." Ettoreo said softly as he took her hand and kissed the top of it.  
A show of his promise.

 

Ari sighed a bit as she watched him pull away and then head back inside, he did look disappointed that he couldn't dance with her all through the night, but he could only give what he had.  
She did suppose she should go downstairs to meet her brother, but there was something telling her that they shouldn't go to the party.

Like I had said before, Arizona usually listens to her instincts. But not this time, all she did was brush it off as disappointment because Ettoreo could not make it at the same time they did. Everything would feel better the moment he got there, only because she said she'd loose herself in his arms and dance the night away. Tomorrow... when that had to leave, that'd be an... awful day. She would've considered staying here or at least extending their stay. Though this was not her home, it wasn't - not now at least.

And Benny actually had a home that he would like to stay at and he would want Arizona to stay with him, he also didn't believe in staying with someone because you think you might like them.  
He would just brush this off as something... special. As in, a very good memory. But she would regret it; if she didn't have the memory she wanted... it would just make her upset to even think about it.

 

Just thinking about the day they'd have to leave and thinking about how she could prolong it, it made her chest her. Her throat tighten and... wetness came to her green eyes.  
And then the words Ettoreo had said, her brother might be waiting for her downstairs. She knew that he would like to get this vacation over with... so, why prolong the inevitable?

 

Ari sighed under her breath and then took a few deep breaths, only to calm herself down. Not many knew this, but she was a very good actor. Hiding her feeling and emotions all the time... hadn't that been the thing of her life.  
When her sister died, when her father and mother died. All the time, she hid it and refused to talk about it because she was afraid of the memories that would come back, the emotions. She was afraid that she'd be weak in Benny's eyes because all he has ever been for her, was strong.

Ari could not break in front of him, Ettoreo... or anyone. Really, only when she was alone and she was good with waiting for the right time. The girl fixed her dress after a moment and then decided to go downstairs, knowing she most likely kept her brother waiting long enough. Hopefully he wouldn't be too angered with her disappearance.

And hopefully he wouldn't be upset with Ettoreo either. It wasn't that man's fault, it was hers. She hadn't let go of his hand for a long time and begged him a couple of times to come with her, but he's the one who broke away and went to go take care of his family business.  
She understood, Ari wouldn't want to keep him from his family.

 

~

 

"Mario."  
"Sì, father?" Mario raised his eyes to glance at his father, who had almost dead eyes and he was staring at the bruise that had formed on his head, dried blood where his nose was and his eyes were nearly clouded.  
"What happened." His voice was hard, cold and here was the devil himself. Able to make you tremble where you stood, make you obey him because he controlled you with fear. And he doesn't ask questions, he demands answers and will get them no matter how slow he had to kill someone.

But here's the problem, it was rather hard to remember what happened, and his father did not like it when he had no answers... it made him mad, and when he got mad, someone would die.  
"I... got the rat, like you said. And I taught him not to mess you our business... when I went to leave. It was dark, upon waking again... Ettoreo wasn't there." Mario looked down again and tried to make himself look as small as possible because the eyes of the devil were upon him and they were full of hate, anger and rage.

He was trying so hard to control himself... And wow was it frightening and very unexpected.  
It obviously wasn't Ettoreo, that man had been withering in pain on the ground. And all Mario had seen was a flash of grey, wolf-like eyes and that was terrifying, but Mario dare not speak for fear of upsetting his father further and possibly having a bullet hole in his head.

 

"So, you do not know who your attacker is?" All Mario did was shake his head and kept his eyes down.  
"What of Benjamin?"  
"As far as I knew, he was still sitting there."

"Sir, Ettoreo is a threat to what we are doing. I suggest we terminate him." Said one of the new recruits, he wasn't 'new-new', he has been here for half a year. But he did not know the story. Which was bad on his part... Mario didn't even know the story, but for whatever reason, his father wanted that little rat alive. Even after what he did, maybe he wanted to tear his life a part and then tear him apart in the best possible way...

But still, that man should not have said what he did. Mario lowered his head and moved his hands up to plug his ears, as did everyone else.  
Then his father, quickly pulled out his gun and shot the man in the knee - watching as he went down.  
Mario didn't look, he didn't want to because he had never, ever been a fan of killing and his father respected that, but would often force him to shoot someone despite the protests of not wanting to - so... that actually was not respect for what his son wanted to do.

 

And yet there was not a thing he could do about it, he was forced to stay with this mafia and live a life of killing people, for no reason. For his father's own enjoyment, perhaps he did believe in killing someone, should they try to kill you first and that was the last resort. But nothing... for fun, ever.

 

And it was hard not hear his father talking to the man about why his life was ending, "You do not suggest anything, you are here to listen to me. And let me, make the decisions... I'm sorry to say this, but even Ettoreo has more time to live." And with that, there was a gun that was pointed to the man's head and despite his screams and pleas of saying sorry...  
"I never liked apologies either." And it always scared him, whenever someone pulled the trigger.

Mario jumped in his seat and then froze for a moment, then he slumped in his seat, and sighed out.  
"Get him out of here." Van-Durven demanded as he motioned to the others, that was basically a sign for them to leave. A few of them went and gathered up the dead man before they walked out, everyone else following except for Mario and now he was alone with his father - in the same room, and hell... it was scary. He was afraid of his father.  
He was fücking afraid of him.

 

He had more scars from his father than he did from anyone else... And his father was still upset, so he needed to watch his words carefully.  
"Father... why do you care about Ettoreo so much?" Curiosity had gotten the better of him and he couldn't help himself when asking, but he made so it was in a small voice. Ready for rejection of a backlash, Mario tensed himself up and sucked in a breath upon feeling the devil's eyes on him once more.

 

There was silence for a very long moment, and then he replied, "You will see very soon, my son. Go check on Bianca and then prepare your costume, we will be heading to the masquerade soon."  
That was not very reassuring and like his father, he allowed his anger control him with standing up quickly and using his piercing blue eyes to glare at his father, "That is not a good enough reason! I want to know /now/ you had many chances to kill him - and he is an obvious trouble, a parasite that is destin to destroy-" and Mario's little rant ended when his father was upon him, grabbing his neck and starting to squeeze it, cutting off his air way.

And for a moment, Mario was panicked and started to breath through his mouth rapidly, though it wasn't helping anything.  
Then he remembered something he had learned from his childhood - breath through your nose. And so, that is what he did... sucking in small breaths of air through his nose.

 

"You will stop squealing you worthless brat, nearly as worthless as your mother. That's why I put a bullet in her, but since you are my only living son..." Van-Durven trailed off a moment, a slightly far away look in his eyes while Mario was quick to grab his wrist for support, not to pull it off because that would only prove go anger him further.  
"I will spare you, at least until you have your own children. Now go, pig." The last words were spat at him and then the devil threw his angel captive to the ground.

And the angel who had hints of a demon in him, quickly scrambled to his feet and ran out. With his ears pinned back and tail tucked, hoping he wouldn't feel the sting of his owner's punch.  
Luckily, he was able to make it downstairs without his father coming after him and beating the hell out of him.

Though Mario was still wary about his father appearing from nowhere, he always seemed to do that.  
At least, that's how it was in Mario's childhood... he would just come out of nowhere after the kid did something bad and then he'd have a talking to, a couple of slap, extra chores or he'd beat him half to death and then make him work after it...

It all depended on how much he offended his father, but now... he was all grown up and he had the power to say no and fight back. He just didn't know how.

 

Oh, yeah... to check on the prisoners. That's why he was down here, Bianca. She was the most beautiful woman here, and his father kept her that way. She didn't get hurt or touched by anyone except for him, but she had the fire and she would constantly shout at both of the Van-Durven's in a language that Mario didn't understand...  
But he would try to show her kindness because he felt like he had to, not because he fell in love with her. He did, but... it wasn't like the normal love. More of a protective love, not of a romantic love.

"Hey... Bianca." And she was learning to trust him, but most of the time she was... not thinking clearly. She always begged him to let her go, or... she would ask him if he wanted to hear a story, and since he had a few hours left until he actually had to go. He'd allow his time to be spent with Bianca, and yes... he was very curious about what the story about.

"I think... I'm ready to hear the story." Mario said as he set down in front of her cage and she turned her head, bright blue eyes staring at him through the darkness for a moment before she moved closer to him, and her skin was rather pale and she looked a little bit skinnier.  
"You want to hear the story?" She asked him slowly, searching his blue eyes for the answer, blue eyes that seemed very familiar to him. Mario nodded once, and even though it might be a stupid story, or one that didn't make sense... he still wanted to hear it because this woman was 'great' company... better than the devil of his father.

"Once... there was a woman. Who married a man that she loved very much... and she got pregnant with twins... Though she didn't meet them or stAy with them for a long time. She still loved them very much and will do anything to protect them..."


	27. Chapter 27

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guess what, I finally have a name for it!! Yay!

"There was this woman, who had long dark hair and pretty light eyes; she worked at a flower shop, and she loved flowers... all kinds of them and she knew how to tend to them, that was her favorite part. She also liked how the smelled because it brought a little bit of nature indoors. And she believed that they helped brighten up anyone's day." Bianca started as she looked into the distance from Mario, a far away look in her eyes as if she was actually there that day...

He glanced into her cage and saw the flower markings on the wall, drawn from her own blood. It was horrifying to see, even more so to think about why she would do it. But he learned something from his father, never interrupt a person when they are talking, but it wasn't like Bianca could do anything to him... fear would always play a big part in his life.  
So that's why he didn't interrupt her to talk about why she drew on the back walls.

 

"One day, when she was tending to the flowers... a man came in. He had light hair, light eyes and a very nice smile. He said that he was looking for some tulips, for his grandmother - those were her favorite flowers.  
"And so... she got them for the man. And when she gave them to him, their fingers brushed together and it was like they immediately fell in love with each other." Her eyes darted to Mario and she smiled slowly, a smile that actually unsettled him because it looked like she was insane. Being down here, I'm sure you would go insane. 

 

"Now, he came back after a few days and asked for more tulips. Though this time he didn't say who they were for... And then he came back the next day and told her that she looked very familiar - then that's when they remembered that they lived in the same apartment complex. He asked her if she'd like to come over to his place some time... And she accepted because she felt a deep pull to him, something she hadn't felt before and now she was just acting on her feelings and not her instincts."  
Mario raised his bright blue eyes and looked over her while she was just still staring off into space, a look of concentration on her face as if she was trying to remember what happened next.

 

"The next day, she went over to the man's house for dinner... everything was okay with them. They talked and realised they shared common interests... in that moment, the two of them realised that they were perfect for each other - at least that's what the woman thought. And whenever she saw him, she would have a happy feeling, and she'd always want to be with him. Of course they both had lives away from each other... though that didn't stop the woman, oh no... even when it was a clear warning to stop..."

 

⇤  
⇥

 

"Robert! Hey, hi." The man raised his head when he heard his name being called, his hazel eyes sparkled happily when he saw her, "Elda!" And with that, he dropped what he was doing (which was painting) and walked over to where she was standing, he gave the woman a hug, a happy one. He was just rather excited to see her because there was something he really wanted to ask the woman -

The woman smiled and returned the hug, her blue eyes shining, then she pulled away from Robert and looked him in the eyes - seeing 'the look', meaning he was going to ask her something very important.  
Sensing that she already knew that he was going to ask her something, by the way she closed her mouth and tilted her head down, waiting for him to speak before she spoke again... good, she was learning.

 

"I would like you to come over to my place tonight - I have something special planned for us." His tone dropped a little bit lower and there was an edge to his voice that basically said that he would find her if she didn't come, that she was to drop everything and listen to him, come to him when she was called.

You were not supposed to feel that way when you were with someone you loved, if you did even love him. But she wasn't so sure about this man anymore... he never went past yelling, thank God.  
But he was always demanding and always controlling her life - and he would threaten her safety, her friends' safety and she didn't know why she didn't just said 'goodbye' to him and leave Venice forever... hell, she'd even leave Italy if she had to. But the thought of him having the right sources to find her again... the thought of him getting so angry that he'd just pop his top and kill her, those were the only reasons why she was still with him.

That and because of the Argenzianos , she couldn't have them hurt. They were like her family, the only family that was still alive at least.  
They weren't even blood relatives.

 

⇤  
⇥

 

"She had no other choice but to go with the evil man who claimed to love her, over the months, as they had grown closer... it was realised that this man was more different than he put out. He could control the woman by threatening her. Though he never acted out on those threats because she dare not oppose him.  
"That night, she dressed up in a really nice dress - because he liked it when she dressed up all pretty for him; then she headed over to his home..."

 

⇤  
⇥

 

Elda looked down at the ground and sucked in a breath, adjusting her dress a moment before she knocked on the door lightly and took a step back - keeping her eyes down and away from him as he opened the door and just stood there for a long moment, looking over her and judging her. Seeing what she had done right and wrong this time.

"You're on time."  
Yes, he had a set time for when she should be here and if she was late, even a minute... he would get so close to hitting her, it was frightening to see him so angry so she tried everything to make sure he wasn't stressed, so he wouldn't get angry, so she could buy herself some more time to figure out how she was going to get away from this man.

But still, Elda would remain for as long as she could. And trying to help him or change him would only make it worse, and now she realised that she actually did love him and that was why she was still here, still clinging to a tad bit of hope that he would change. But her hope was running out and it was going to be gone very soon.

~

After a moment of him regarding her, finally he let her step in and she went to put her jacket and purse up. Then she took her shoes off and silently followed after the man she feared into the kitchen, he pulled the seat out for her and she sat down, "Thank you, Robert." Her voice was small, and all she could do was hope he believed she was really thanking him instead of saying it just to avoid his wrath.

"I made your favorite." Robert commented as he too sat down and started to eat. But he was the one who took a bite first while she put the napkin on her lap and waited patiently for him.  
After he had taken a bite of the veal, he motioned for her to go ahead and eat. She slowly took a very small bite and wiped her mouth afterwards, "Thank you very much Robert, it is very good." Elda said in a small voice, it was good. But she knew Robert didn't cook, he never did.

So it was kinda odd as to why he would do this for her, but she didn't ask him. Instead she was silent and listened to him as he spoke and ate her food how a 'lady' should.

 

⇤  
⇥

 

Mario felt a slight unease in his stomach as he continued to listen to what Bianca had to say, he was sure this story was heading for the darker side of town. And soon, with the way the woman's eyes darkened.

"He talked, she listened. Only saying something when he was speaking to her, he just liked to talk and hear himself doing it. It was pretty much a one sided conversation and he didn't mind it at all, because she was silent. But she was there and she could hear what he had to say; and by the time they were finished eating, he was ready for the next part of his plan."

 

⇤  
⇥

 

"Clean up the kitchen, please. Then come sit with me on the couch." And that was the first time he ever said please or had a light tone to his voice, it was rather different from what Elda was used to.  
But she held her surprise in and did what was asked of her. Even though she was starting to feel a bit light headed and dizzy now - she managed. And after she had finished cleaning the kitchen, she walked over to where she thought Robert was supposed to be.

He wasn't in the living room, so he was most likely in his room. And of course, she barely thought of the fact that he had drugged her and worse plans than killing her for his own fun, instead... when she walked into his room and saw him. When she was beckoned over to the man and started to kiss him, she just went with it because it was too hard to think anything right.

 

⇤  
⇥

 

By now Bianca had tears in her eyes and she looked really upset when finally, she glanced to Mario and there was a slight hatred in her eyes that now seemed to glow with the tears, but she was not angry at him. Nothing was direction at him, only to the villain in the story.

"She was råped, by Robert. And she ended up pregnant; she was so afraid that she didn't tell Robert for a very long time, until one day she just broke down and told him every thing. But she was afraid he would tell her to get an abortion, instead - he was a changed man and he told her that they would build a family together. Elda was naive enough to believe it." Bianca shook her head and glanced up to the dark ceiling and whispered something that Mario didn't catch, and then she was looking back to him, a weak smile on her face.

 

"Months later, she found out she was going to have twins. Both boys and she was very happy. She shared the news with Robert and he was happy as well, by then their relationship had turned into a normal one. And Elda didn't question where the children came from, she didn't question why her lover was suddenly acting normal.  
"All she knew was she couldn't wait until her babies came."  
Now, to Mario it sounded like there would be a happy ending to the story, but he was still cautious about how it would actually end.

"When they came, they were a little early and she did not have time to tell Robert about it, they were both born healthy, baby boys. But they were fraternal twins," a smile came to her face as she...  
"One with light hair and dark eyes, one with dark hair and light eyes. Both of them the perfect blend of their parents. And she loved her children very much, holding them close she gave them both a special name... Elpidio for the dark haired one, and Maso to the light haired one.  
"And then the villain came along, he was angry that he wasn't informed that the children were born. So... he killed Elda."

Mario's eyebrows furrowed and is mouth opened in a silent gasp - thinking that the woman in the story had been killed, "He took Maso for himself so she would never see him again, and then he gave Elpidio to the Argenzianos - her family, then bribed them to turn away from her.. But she was still allowed to be in his life, just not directly involved with it. She missed Maso very much, and pleaded to see him every day, she wanted the Argenzianos to tell her where her other son was, but they refused.  
"Every day it broke her heart to lie to Elpidio... so she started to search for Robert and Maso... it isn't likely that she ever found them..." Bianca said softly as she finally finished her story and looked down at the ground, Mario was silent as he thought about it, he was wondering if it was true or not.

 

Suddenly, Bianca looked to him and reached a skinny arm out through the bars - wanting to touch his face. And he didn't move away from her, letting her touch it gingerly and hold it, "What is your name?"  
That's right, he didn't tell her his name... And wow, was her hand very cold, still, Mario wouldn't shy away from it, "Mario, my name is Mario Van-Durven." He wasn't afraid of her, not because she was weak, because he had a sense she wouldn't hurt him in anyway.

"Mario..." she whispered, a sad smile on her face as she reached out her other hand and grabbed his face, "Be wary of what your father is doing. It is not right and you know it, so be strong when the time comes to fight him. And never do it alone..." she trailed off when she heard Van-Durven call out for his son in anger, "Go now - before he finds us." She whispered and let go of him, and with that, the man stood up and quickly left the basement.

"Ten minutes, Junior. Better get dressed before Big-Daddy catches you." Jake said as he slapped Mario on the shoulder once he left the basement, "Yeah- thanks for covering." Mario said before he started forward to his room, Bianca, Elda, Robert, Maso and Elpidio on his mind as he went.

 

There was a truth somewhere in the story, and he swore that he'd find out. Even if it killed him.


	28. Chapter 28

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright, so there's also another title to this story - To Tell the Truth.  
> Which one is better?  
> I have no freaking idea.

Benjamin raised his head up as he heard the soft swishing of his sister's gown, she had just now left the hotel and it has been a couple minutes past fifteen - but that was alright, seeing as she wasn't coming downstairs with Ettoreo, though her gaze was somewhat...  
Dark. Upset. Unhappy.

It wasn't hard to figure out why she was like this. She obvious thought she had some kind of connection to Ettoreo, while Benny thought it was... he didn't know what he thought it was, but he knew it wasn't real. That was for sure because he didn't believe in love.  
His sister barely knew the feeling of it, she didn't know it existed because she really hadn't felt it. And things don't really exist until they show themselves to you, and he was maybe a little bit afraid that love was showing itself his sister with heartbreak and pain following right after it.

Only to be in the form of Ettoreo who would be the one who had 'heartbreak' written all over himself, he was a player. And no 'player' would ever be good enouh for his sister, he wanted her to call in love with a man who would treat her like the jewel she was and never break her heart and if he did, he'd find the best ways to put it back together and he'd never desert her.

 

Jeez, it sounded like Benny was creating her true love for her. If he had his way, she wouldn't ever have a love and just be content with her brother, but she wasn't like that, she liked to spread her wings and fly... and all he liked to do was clip her wings, keep her in a cage and make sure she doesn't go anywhere without him.  
He knew that was thinking wrong, he couldn't control her and he couldn't control her feelings do why was he trying?  
Why does he even bother?

 

Well, because he was more stubborn than a mule and very paranoid about what could happen to the woman who kept him sane. It's all he could do, was try - but here Benjamin was, trying in the wrong way. Trying to keep his sister caged because he feared for her life, but locking up something who craved to be free would kill them, it would kill them.  
But those who sought to lock up the free... will live. Maybe he should start trying to let her go and find out what's out there and just be there in case she ever got hurt.

Because there was no way anyone could ever be protected from pain, no matter how hard you tried.  
His father didn't try hard enough to protect him, and Benny hadn't tried hard enough to protect his sister and mother... so that'd why he was trying so hard to protect Ari and hell, if he ever realised that he couldn't keep her... would be the day be finally opened his eyes to emotions. Should the chance ever presented itself... he didn't know if he'd take it or kick it away.

 

You'd never know when the chance would ever present itself again, so it was wiser to take it and enjoy the outcome than wonder what would've happened if you had taken it.

 

Benny smiled just a bit as he reached his hand out and took his sister's, stepping to the side so she could get herself into the car - he then considered telling her that she was late, but it wasn't likely that she knew he had set a time limit for how long Ettoreo was allowed to talk to her, once again, the lesson of not being able to control people came into his mind. But the only thing he could do was try to control people he couldn't.

In the end, it didn't really work. Not really.  
"Thanks, Benny." She said softly to him, stepping inside of the car and then sitting in the back seat where her brother easily made his place beside her and glanced to the driver who had a split mask, black and white on one side and the next. He had brilliant blue eyes and dirty blonde hair that was tied back in a ponytail (it was Luciano - he was just wearing the mask for some dramatic effect. Though thank go's he was smart enough to not wear it when they were driving. Because the moment they stepped in, he took it off and set it down.), "We're ready." Benny said in a soft voice, one like he was nervous - which he didn't use a lot.

And it wasn't likely he was nervous - well, scratch that; he would be terrified. People. Crowds, swallowing up his sister, swallowing him up. Oh-kay, on second thought he wasn't ready for this and it was hard to just sit there quietly and watch the dark scenery go by while his heart thumped wildly in his chest and he took in short ragged gasps.

His hand strayed to his thigh and gripped it tightly, digging his nails into his skin, through the fabric of his pants only to calm himself and make sure he didn't go and grab something else, he knew it was there and there was no reason to panic, there was no way he'd have to use it.  
He wouldn't have to and Benny was trying to force himself to believe that he wouldn't have to, but something in the back of his mind was nagging at him. Though he couldn't place what the heck was pulling at him, and just because he had an odd feeling, he was bringing something that'd make him feel better should something bad ever happen to them...

Which was very, very, very unlikely... right? Seriously, right? Nothing would happen, there were a lot of people there and it was unlikely, but there was still a possibility. So that was why he had what he needed in case of an emergency. A very, very big one.

~

 

Arizona sat in the back seat, beside her brother and she was trying not to think about the Italian man she had left behind, and instead she imagined what the masquerade would be like, how it would feel to dance again! She hadn't danced in a very long time with a partner that was willing, that wanted to dance with her, laugh and have fun.

She was sure that she'd be meeting some men there. But she was also sure that none of them would capture her attention like Ettoreo did, she was sure that... none of them would make her feel the way she did when she was with him and it was only with him when she felt this way.  
It was weird, she didn't really know what to do about it, she didn't know what to call it... all she knew that it was there and there wasn't anything she could've done to make it go away; then again, it felt so good, so right... why would she ever want it to go away?

 

And wow... it felt like magic, nothing she could ever describe... other than always wanting to be near him, feeling a tightness in her chest when he looked at her, talked to her and touched her. Even if it was a fleeting moment, it gave heat to her cheeks and sparked life in the pit of her stomach, stopping her breath and making her want to fumble over the words she had to say.  
And with his golden gaze, it melted her.

Thinking about him was the same way but it wasn't as strong as it was when she saw him in person.  
Arizona made a slight noise under her breath as she raised her head up and rubbed her forehead for a moment, sighing slightly because her mind had started to wonder off to the day where they'd have to leave. That was a very bad day, she didn't want to think about it, it made her dad and if she could; she'd sell everything and moved to Italy to live with Ettoreo.

 

And have Benny as they'd pet and possibly even their annoying child. Speaking of her brother who very much hated the public and being with other people, he was strangely quiet for someone who liked to hear himself talk. (Sarcasm, thank you very much. But he would often comment on... random things because these just how Benny went.)

She glanced to his face, which was a mask (no, literally - he didn't take his mask off), but he was looking straight ahead and gripping his own thigh as if he was in tremendous amounts of pain, but if he was, his mouth would be twisted in a different way. Right now it was completely neutral.  
Apparently he too had gotten the acting skills from his mother.

Now she was not a pervert, she wasn't a slút either and she had no interest for her brother, whatsoever. She just happened to look at his crotch (an accident), and seen a bulge there.  
And though she had no idea what arousal looked like, she knew what a weapon was, how one looked and how it was shaped. Why in the hell-?!

"What the-? What's that?" She asked as she reached for it, her eyebrows drawn in confusion, and before she could take it from his pants, he was slapping her very hard on the top of the hand - it made a very loud smacking noise that echoed through the car.  
"What the hell?!" Benny shouted when he turned to her, his green eyes wide with a hint of shock, anger and complete embarrassment for what she had just done to him.

"Benny, stop-" and with that, she reached over again and even though he was trying to pull her hands away, she still put them in his pants and pulled out the gun he was trying to hide from her, oh no.  
When it came to weapons, she was no idiot, reaching in her brother's pants was an idiot move, but she figured he wouldn't tell her if she didn't do something like that.

 

"Ari! Jesus, what the... fhuck are you doing?" Benny asked as he made a swipe for the small handgun that she was holding, but she quickly held it up in the air and leaned away from him so he couldn't reach it.  
"Why do you have this?" She demanded, pushing his face away with her free hand and glaring at her older brother who was returning the look with those fierce grey (and green) eyes of his that said he was unhappy with her behavior and she would have hell to pay later on in life.

"Something just doesn't feel right." Benny started once he realised trying to force it back to his possession would not help anything, and Luciano was actually not listening, he had music playing up front to give him and his sister some privacy to talk about whatever they needed to talk about, and thank God he did because of what Ari had just done...  
They could've been busted for what they did - but he wasn't so happy with his younger sister knowing about what he had with him.

 

"I just wanted it for tonight, so... just." Benjamin extended his hand to where his sister was and she was just eyeing him as if she didn't believe her brother, well she didn't have a choice because it was the truth and he would get his gun back; No matter what his sister said.  
Most of the times, when he actually listened to his instincts, they were right. And therefore, that's why he had his gun.

His sister narrowed her eyes for a couple of seconds as she looked him over, "You're going to be wrong, you should've left it back at the hotel room." But she didn't go to keep it to herself, instead, she passed it back to her brother and he snatched it away from his sister and put it inside of his jacket, giving his sister a slightly wary glance.

"Thank you." Was all her brother said, and then it went quiet between them. But after it did, Arizona was wishing it wasn't there. Because now that she knew he had a gun, and he felt an odd feeling too, about going to this ball... it made her mind start to run over these 'what ifs', and make fear build up in her stomach for what might come at them tonight.  
Or she could just brush it off as being nervous about dancing with Ettoreo... or  
Maybe it was the sadness and the anger of leaving tomorrow that was plaguing her tonight... but whatever it was...

She was just going to brush it off and sent a quick prayer for it to be nothing.


	29. Chapter 29

Had he known the way it looked on the inside, he wouldn't even be here in the first place, he could handle the people. But this, this was too much...

Benny steps slowed just a bit as he frowned at the inside of this huge... ballroom thing, it was all old. Rustic... And just- it was Victorian styled. He hated this kind of style, why keep something old around when you can have something nice and modern and something that wasn't trying to suck you into the past, he didn't want to be in the past, he wanted to be in the present and not have any mentions of the past because the past was not fun, not good and just... 'no'.

"Oh, Benny, stop it." Ari said as she tilted her head to look up at her brother, tightening her arm around his and squeezing it as if she was trying to get his mind off of how the masquerade was themed. To her, it was beautiful. She was a lover of history and anything rustic, she loved the old parts of any place and... She wouldn't mind being there.  
Only because, well... everything would just be a whole lot simpler and people wouldn't be missing out with family and they could all just be together and interact with each other.

That's what she wants the most, but her eldest brother was afraid of the past, afraid of being without technology for his own reasons. But she thought it was to keep his mind from the past, he constantly needed to keep his mind busy, having it running from one thing to the next and he needs to be moving around to do it; he can't comprehend the past. Benny doesn't want to, all he wants it to shove it down and forget it ever existed.  
If he ever stopped keeping his mind busy, then his thoughts would wonder. And the past would creep up on him, it would seize his mind, freeze his heart and steal his breath until he was convulsing in his mind. Internally fighting himself and his thoughts, dying on the inside but smiling like everything was fine.

Words whispering in his mind, screams pounding in his throat, nails digging into his skin and feeling desperate to do anything to stop the thoughts...  
That's what being a thinker felt like.

 

Or at least that's what her brother told her when she asked him why he kept moving around and doing things that have already been done.  
He described to her, in detail, about what being a thinker meant. Though Benny never said out loud what he was thinking about, it was easy to guess - by the redness in his eyes that one time... And hell, it was rather frightening when he described it, but she didn't allow her emotions to be shown on that day.

Instead she just looked at him for a long time and said; We should get a horse.  
She had always wanted a horse, but with the way Benny had described it, always wanting to keep the thoughts away, having a horse would be the perfect thing to keep your mind busy with. There was soo much to do with it, maybe two horses and a few dogs. Oh, yeah... that would be fun.

Taking care of something would easily keep Benny's mind distracted. And then there was this other thing he was afraid of; killing something because he couldn't take proper care of it.  
Which is why he had his little sister to teach him, and she always pointed out he managed to take care of her.

He wouldn't say it out loud, but he would look at her and his wolf-eyes said it all... he couldn't protect Tina, their mother, or their father. Losing people was such a big part of his life, it was just so hard to break his walls.  
Which why she needed a person who would never stop trying. Someone who would replace her, but he wouldn't cling too tightly to them that they'd run away... it's what she wanted. For her brother, and supposedly for herself so she could fly without him tying her down or being right beside her through every thing.

 

"I still think we should get a horse, maybe a foal and a grown up horse." Ari said as she lead her brother over to the food table, because he liked tasting food. Other than wanting to be a detective, he wanted to be a chef and he was very good at cooking.  
And criticizing food. He loved to criticize food more than he likes to cook it and he had something bad to say about every single dish he tasted, while his sister (who liked to create art and criticize it), sound nothing wrong with it. If she liked it, she did.  
If she didn't, then she didn't. But she couldn't say what she did and didn't like about it except for it tastes funny, too cold, blah, blah, blah.

While her brother would complain about textures, temperatures, savory, sweet, what goes with what doesn't, etc!  
Her brother was crazy like that.

Just as she was when she was looking at art. Picking out little things that shouldn't be there, criticizing the brush strokes and while her brother played the same game with her.  
He found nothing wrong, he liked what he liked, etc.

 

They certainly were an odd family.

~

"Eat some cheese and shut up." Ari said as she put a slice of cheese on a piece of... bread and then shoved it in her brother's mouth. Making him open first before putting it in there and watching him chew.  
Then she looked over the crowd of people, hearing classical music in the background and catching whiffs of conversations that she didn't necessarily listen into.

Sooner than she'd expect, her brother started to complain about how one cheese slice was cut too thick or too thin, how some of the bread was crust or some of it was too soft, too buttery and tasted too much like garlic.  
"Okay, vampire. Stop complaining and eat what you like, no matter what's wrong with it." Ari said with a roll of her eyes, turning away and walking over to the wine glasses where she got herself something to drink and then walked back to Benny who was now quietly eating apples, cheese and garlic bread together. She found that rather disgusting, but hey; you like what you like.

He was silent and just stuffing his face full of food, probably saying the ingredients in his head to keep himself busy from thinking about the past, and to not talk with his sister perhaps.  
And after he had finished chewing the (gross) combination of food; he turned to his sister and opened his mouth - "Do the girls ask the guys to dance? Or do the guys have to ask the girls?" Because if it was the second way, then there was no way he was ever getting a dance, which it wasn't like he wanted to. He didn't like to dance and he didn't like touching people, or talking to them.

Benjamin Felocife was not afraid of talking to people, he wasn't shy either - he just... strangers were a no-no.  
Ari turned her attention to her brother and made a face to him, "No, everyone just randomly starts dancing because they feel like it." Then she rolled her eyes at her brother and turned away from him, "It can go either way."

The confusion filtered away from his face as he sighed and looked over to the crowd who were now just starting to dance with their partners.  
He didn't like this, dancing was not his forté, investigating things were. And criticizing food, as well as making it.

 

There was a couple more seconds of silence between the siblings, Arizona spoke up again because she was rather bored with the silence, "How about a competition?"  
Benny turned his head and raised his eyebrows up to his masked sister, wondering what she was proposing...  
"Whoever can get the most people to dance with them for more than a minute, wins." She said, grinning because she knew her brother couldn't talk to people to save his life, unless it was giving them an order. But what would they win? She'd have to set some kind of prize that would be tempting to him...

"Who ever wins gets to pick where we're going next." Her choice would be; back to Italy.  
"Oor, if I win, I get to choice where we aren't going." He said as he raised his finger up, stopping her from running off to find someone to dance with. His sister did not like the way he put the stakes; so Arizona would be even more determined to win the dancing competition.

 

"And you know, Benny - all you have to do is just walk up to some nice lady and ask to dance, that's all." And with that, she took a couple steps closer to where the others were dancing and stuck her hand out, that's when someone grabbed her hand and pulled her onto the 'dancefloor'. Classical music... ugh, the waltz and all the boring dances.  
He liked rumba and salsa dances better.

 

Benny raised his head and frowned slightly as he watched his sister dance around the room, she had such... grace and skill and then he found himself wishing that she was a young girl again where he didn't have to worry about her falling for a guy, wanting the little girl back when she cried if someone took her toy and not because a guy would leave her...

When the day comes... how he will be hating that day...  
Benjamin shook his head and instead, decided on just asking some woman to dance with him, only because he knew his sister was rather serious about this challenge, she always was and he couldn't go down without a fight, now could he?


	30. Chapter 30

Benny waited for a few moments, still standing by the food table and waited until a more lively song came on. All while his sister danced with a few men who had skill, but Benny had more and he could prove it. He knew the Salsa and the Rumba dance; he incorporates that into his fighting movement. Anyone who can do that has skill.

And yes, often he would be dancing with another woman who knew how to salsa and a woman who didn't mind being touched on her body. He didn't mind either because he knew her really well and there was also a few layers of clothes on when they danced and he practically shut his mind off when he danced, it was all about the other dancer and making sure you don't take a step wrong, focus on the dance and your partner.  
Should you look the wrong direction, think of something else that takes your attention, you're gonna step on or drop your partner.  
Then your partner is going to be mad and kick you in the crotch.

He talks about it like it's happened to him, and yes, she had repeatedly kicked his crotch. Twice. Unprotected and... it was the worst feeling in the world. Once he even thought he wouldn't have kids. Luckily a visit to the doctor made everything all better and now he had to wear a 'cup' whenever he was around her, all the guys had to.  
She just... liked to kick men there, basically telling them to stay away from her. But she doesn't do it for no reason, she's way smarter than that.

Oh, and there his thoughts went, straying from the real mission at hand, which was get a dance. He often found himself thinking about her and it wasn't love! Before anyone jumped to conclusions and started wanting him to get together with her...  
He was just trying to figure her out. He didn't like her at all - because a relationship was so out of the question.

 

Look how his family turned out, what if he turned into that?!

He didn't want to be that, he didn't want to send people into darkness, he didn't want people to start drinking and smoking and hitting their kids because she blames her husband's death on them!  
That wasn't him, that wasn't Kaylee... it wouldn't. He wouldn't let it, it's never going to happen, ever.  
Over his own dead body.

 

Benny stepped over to a woman who w was by the drinks and offered her a hand, "Fancy a dance?" He did not have charm, whenever he tried to flirt, it always ended horribly.  
Perhaps because his sisters forced him to try it on them - no, no. Gross, mental image needs to leave his mind, maybe if it was someone he didn't know, he could do it better.  
That or he'd sweat his socks off.

 

The woman glanced at Benny and raised her eyebrows up for a second before she set her glass down and took his hand, "What the hell, why not?" And he couldn't help a slight smile as he took the girl's hand and led her through the dance floor where they quickly picked up the dance.  
She wore a black and blue butterfly mask with a matching gown and could she dance, all they had to do was... talk. And boy how easily the words flowed out of his mouth, they found something they had in common, as in various types of dancing and this woman was very fun to dance with.  
She was good as well.

 

The next dance he switched partners and he was fifteen minutes into dancing when he spun the girl away and quickly moved to catch another, holding her for a minute before he allowed her room to dance and then he was grinning down at his sister who was half glaring up at him, but there was a smile on her face as she dance with her brother, allowing him to spin her and then pull her back to him again, "Well, hello there."  
"Does this count?" Benny grinned as he pulled away on my to come back to her again and spin in a circle.

"Noo, brother - how many women have you danced with?" She asked, swaying back and forth with him.  
"Three. /Not/ including you." Benny said as he danced with her across the open floor, giving her a half spin before holding her again, "I have you beat by one - not including you." She said with a smirk, glancing up at him to see his own smirk, his grey eyes sparkling just a tad bit.

"Then just better step up my game." And with that, her brother spun her and then let her go to find another dance partner while he found his own, smirking so slightly as he felt the pace picking up so he had to move his feet fast.  
Good; he always loved a challenge.

 

~

 

"Federico, consider what you are doing; allowing innocent people to die to save your own skin. You understand how cowardly that is, right?" Ettoreo attempted to reason as he walked along with his so-called-brother, who was taking him to his room where he would 'spend the night'.  
At least until it was all over... or that's what they thought, but a stubborn mule wasn't easily dissuaded from a mission they had made theirs. A propose they had, and he was not going to stop.

No one would stop him from leaving and full filling his promise to a very special girl, that had made her way into his heart, who he was saving. Who made him change his mind because of her. It was never right in the first place to him, but she prompted him to actually do something about it. And he would, if anyone got in the way...  
But the Auditores would be spared, they were the only family he ever knew, even though they couldn't even see the wrong they have done. He'd make it better, he would... or at least he'd try to - but he'd give it his all.

 

"Just shut up, let what needs to be done - get done." Federico said, interrupting the younger's train of thought.  
Ettoreo was about ready to offer a rebuttal when he was pushed into his room, tripping over his own feet - said man landed on the floor with a thud and the door was locked behind him.  
His room was on the highest floor possible, basically the attic that was flooded with bright light and had only one small window - which he had so much practice climbing in and out of, climbing down the high building and his family had no idea, thank God.

"Just stay here, Ettoreo." Federico said through the door, which he was supposed to guard in case the younger tried to leave, "Make it easier on everyone."  
That kinda made him angry, because it was not easy at all, "You just wanna save your own skin, you're pathetic. It will not be easy on the people you seek to kill." Ettoreo shouted to the door as he was up on his feet and hitting against the door, his rage boiling to the point where he was ready to shoot someone through the door.

"Since when did you start caring?" Came the retort, and then the young man fell silent, his dark hair covering his bright golden eyes which were sobering up from the anger he felt, since when did he care?  
When did he start caring?

Ever since he knew the right from wrong, but he hadn't ever had the courage to stand up for what he believed in - not until he met Ari, he would never know how much she would change his life... And that sounded just fine with him. A found smile came on Ettoreo's face as he stepped away from the door and went to where his pillow was, reaching under it, he grasped the cool handle of his gun. Then he turned to where his silver mask was sitting, he took that too. And then he was opening the window and climbing out of it, gripping the gun right my and quickly slipping the mask over his face before he started to shuffle silently across the ledge, he needed to climb down to a balcony - have the guests let him in and then leave the room before sneaking to the garage.

 

That was his plan, at least. Given he wasn't caught some how, but he knew how to get himself out of it, use his gun. And he also had to destroy the power box so his family couldn't use the telephones to contact Van-Durven, hopefully he will already be on his way by the time Ettoreo had reached his car.

 

The man glanced down at the balcony and took a breath, closing his golden eyes and standing still for a moment before he jumped off of the ledge and landed on the balcony in a crouch, a jolt running up his thighs and he swore he needed to do this a little bit more, his legs were running tired.

And with that, he stood up straight and knocked on the glass door, waiting for the Telamars to open the door. And which, they did, shocked to see Ettoreo standing outside - wearing a mask, "Thank you - terribly sorry to interrupt, please continue on." Ettoreo said as he strolled inside and fixed his jacket a bit before he strolled out of their room - now it was time to really put those skills he learned, to use.

 

~

 

Dancing for an hour, nearly non-stop, how much fun could that be? A lot... apparently, who knew he enjoyed dancing so much? He certainly didn't, and dancing with strangers was more fun than dancing alone.  
"Excuse me, I'm just going to cut in..." And suddenly someone's hand were grabbing his and he was dancing with- "The fück? Ettoreo? What in the hell are you-?"  
"Listen, something is going down tonight, but I can't tell you what. Just be on the alert." Benny was spun with a bewildered look on his face and then he was in his partner's arms again.

He knew something would happen... he knew it... but if he couldn't know what it was, then he had to stay alert. No, he needed to get Arizona out of here.  
"Excuse me." Benny muttered as he let go of the woman and then quickly went over to the exit, he wanted to ask the vallet to take him back to the car - and then... he was stopped and told that he couldn't leave until it was over.

He was so close to putting a bullet in someone, but the man had to restrain himself and instead turn away to find Ettoreo, "Don't ask questions, go with it. Just trust me." And that was rather hard; but seeing as he couldn't get out... it was the only thing he could do.

Was put his trust in someone he couldn't, but just because he wasn't allowed to ask questions, doesn't mean he couldn't wonder.  
Now he had to find his sister and keep an eye on her...

If only he could see her.


	31. Chapter 31

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I forgot to post it yesterday.

Ari closed her eyes slightly as the man spun her around and she let herself go, she wasn't thinking about anything bad, she was just... thinking about some man with golden eyes, who would come and sweep her up off of her feet and taking her dancing away. That's how it was easier to pretend that these men were the man she actually wanted to dance with. But she was sure none were as good as the real thing and it was an agony to wait for him to arrive, dancing around in a pretty skirt did help the time to fly bye quickly, closer and closer to the time where she was sure she'd see him again.

But Ari never expected him so soon.

 

The man she was dancing with, let go of her hand and she spun on her own - green eyes shooting open in curiosity, wondering why her partner had let go of her when another pair of arms encircled her, quickly spinning her and then grabbing her waist, the other taking her hand.  
These men sure do love to dance, Ari laughed breathlessly as she raised her green eyes to meet the... golden eyes... And she stopped moving completely, staring at him, her mouth opened just a tab bit - she just couldn't believe he was here, finally.

Oh and the smirk upon his face was something she realised she had missed more than anything and she didn't stop herself this time; Arizona cried out happily and threw her arms around him, like she hadn't seen him in forever. She might be exaggerating just a bit, but it felt like forever to her.

"Ettoreo! What took you so long?" She exclaimed, throwing her arms around the dark haired man and pulling him close, in a near-death-like-grip that said she wasn't going to let him go for a long time, and he had no idea what he had just gotten himself into.  
But he liked to feel loved, not looked down on, he liked to see eye-to-eye with someone, just for once.

 

"I told you, family business - but do not worry, for your Prince is here and he will protect you. He will also dance with you through the night and your evil step-sister who is pretending to be a male, can never get to you or me." He said with a bright grin, starting to waltz with her - but going slow at first.  
"Oh, so my brother is actually a girl and not related to me at all?" She asked, a warm flood through her body as well as an amused twinkle in her eyes as she started into Ettoreo's.  
"Sì, her name is Benithia." He laughed and spun her gently, then holding her a little bit closer than needed, but still...  
"Benithia? I don't think that's even a name." She didn't know for sure, but perhaps the man she was dancing with just made it up to make her smile.  
"Actually, it is a name. It's Beneatha. But I say Benithia. 'E-a'. Not a, 'etha'." And all she did was blink at the man and then laughed at his he was trying to describe it, because it was too much for her to even register. And with his Italian accent, spinning around with him... it was making her dizzy.

"Alright, I should stop screwing with your head." Ettoreo laughed when he saw her shaking her head at him, "Much appreciated." Ari chuckled and patted him on his shoulder.

Then gradually laid her head on it and just smiled, her heart swollen with happiness for this moment that she could have with him. And yes, it was a bit weird to her that she felt this close to a man she barely knew, but felt like she knew forever.  
Felt like she knew every single part of him when he barely told her anything, when she barely told him anything. But maybe that's just how love works, you don't need to know everything about them and you can just go with it. You can just be content with their comfort, without words and... your just there with them.  
Happily.

 

And maybe fighting it was worse, going with it could be better and bring amazing possibilities.  
If you jump into a river on purpose, you shouldn't fight the current, you should just go with it, and you always had the strength to climb out of it. Not right away, but you'll have it.

She didn't think she ever wanted to jump out this river - as long as it was with Ettoreo.

 

~

 

To find his sister, he had to find Ettoreo. Because that man could not go long without being near his sister and it was infuriating. He didn't... see the good in people, really.  
He had been taught to see the bad while Ari recognized the bad and focused on the good, no matter what anyone told her... she believed that anyone could give a second chance, but you shouldn't start until they actually wanted it.

If they wanted a chance... then you can give it to them, don't waste your attempts on people who don't want a second chance.  
Benny frowned as he remembered where she had been last, his sister had been on the dance floor and she was perhaps the second person who Ettoreo would go find. He had promised her a dance, and she had been holding it to him. If he missed the dance, she'd probably skin him alive - and when she threatened a per son, sometimes she meant it, other times she meant half of it.

But it was a possibility that she wouldn't even consider harming a hair on his head.  
Benny worked his jaw for a moment as he stopped near the dance floor and took a glance through it and he saw them swaying with each other, holding each other close and they both had a look on their face that he had never, ever seen before. One that he was sure they didn't even have a name for.

But together, they just look so happy, so calm, not worried about anything... just so in love with each other. That was love, that was the look of love but you could never know it ewe true until you put it to the test. And though he did not believe in love, at all. Love in the way Ari believed there was love... but seeing them, maybe that was all he needed.  
He needed to see it.

But the oldest felt so... I mean, there was a mix of emotions coming from him as he watch the two just embrace each other - it wasn't out right love, it was the blossoming of it and he was seeing it. He was watching his sister being lifted high while he was still on the ground and he wasn't going after her, no. He was letting her fly her own way now.  
He had to, he had to. Benjamin could not keep his sister grounded no matter how bad he wished he could; but then again, all he wanted was her happiness. And if flying without him - on her own, was her happiness.  
Then he would just let his heart break and watch her fly away. Because all Arizona deserved was happiness. Where ever she found it, and whenever she lost it, he would be there to heal her broken wing.

 

Just for this moment, he would let it be okay. Just for this moment, he would be a normal person and pretend it was all okay.  
Then he could go back to hunting and trying to prevent what was going to 'go-down'. Even though Ettoreo said to trust him, trust was a hard thing to come by. Though he knew, eventually his trust was going to have to go in someone.

 

Benny moved away from the crowd and walked himself over to where the classical music was coming from and he went over to the piano player, then talked to him for a couple of minutes, asking for a favor from him for his sister and her actual date.  
Thank God the man could speak English, because be would be lost without people who could speak English.  
Seriously. Especially in Italy, it was obviously time to start taking Italian classes, seeing how his sister just now won this serious competition, and they would most likely be coming back here to revisit Ettoreo, oh joy. And yes, he would come - only to make sure his child-sister wouldn't get herself killed.  
He was nice like that.

 

Benny raised his eyebrows up when he felt a microphone being thrust in his hands and then the music stopping all of a sudden, gently fading out and not starting up again, making a 'few' masked people turned toward the 'stage' where Benny awkwardly stepped up; he was never good at talking to the public, but... for his sister, it should be easy.

 

The man took in a shaky breath and closed his eyes before he flicked the microphone on and started, "Hey, this is for my sister, and uh... our guide. These two are... just so dear to my heart. Or... my sister at least. I couldn't careless about the guide, but my sister cares about him. And so, this is for the two of them." Ettoreo bowed his head and started to chuckle lightly as Benny said that, letting go of the Felocife sister so she could flip her brother off, but there was a blush on her face as she did so - her brother gladly returned gesture.

 

Ettoreo raised his head to glance at Arizona, why the hell not? Benny had gone through all that trouble just to get them a chance together. Then he held his hand out to her - which she took lightly and allowed him to lead her in the middle of the room where the others had cleared a space for them to dance.  
"Guide her heart, okay?" Benny asked softly, and then the music started to play and he set the microphone back, flipping it off. The song was playing from the piano and it was something similar to 'A Thousand Years' Then took a step back, his eyes trained on his sister as he watched her, a small smile playing on his lips.

 

She looked happier than she had ever been before, allowing his little stunt to fall to the back of her mind as she easily danced with the man whom held her close to his heart, it wasn't hard to see how true it was with them.  
It was... nice.

It actually put him at ease, stepping away from the stage and practically away from everyone else, allowing his sister and their guide to be in their own little world while he was going to prowl the premises.  
Protect his sister and as many other people as was possible.

 

Maybe he shouldn't have been keeping an eye on his sister. May be he should've been watching himself - because the next thing he knew, there were arms wrapped around his biceps and a quick blow to his stomach made him stop struggling, made him gasp for breath and allowing himself to be pulled along to the back, there was no way he could call out for help, he couldn't fight back as he was pushed back against the wall.  
He couldn't fight back as he felt a knife plunging into his side, blood tricklingbojt and pain registering in his mind.

 

And he couldn't fight back as the last thing he saw... was. Bright. Blue. Eyes.


	32. Chapter 32

The music was over a whole lot sooner than she would've liked, than the both of them would've liked.  
If only it would last forever. She would dance forever with him, but her brother was likely pull her away - dancing with Ettoreo forever would make both of their feet hurt and they'd get tired, they'd get hungry... And she'd miss the flight back to her home.

Which would be just fine and she would gladly miss her flight as long as it meant she'd be with him, and practically that's all Ari was thinking about right now, being with him, being near him and never letting him go. But you needed to let go of things, you needed to let go of things all the time.  
You had to, there was no choice.

 

"I can't believe he did that, he's such a jerk." Arizona muttered as she pulled away from him and crossed her arms in an annoyed manner, she was annoyed that her brother put her on the spot like that, he knew she hated it when she was the center of attention, just like he did.  
But she loved the dance, she could ignore the eyes and just pretend that it was her and Ettoreo and no one else and just loose herself in his presents and just enjoy it. She didn't have to be worried about a thing, not a thing.

Because the past and the future didn't matter - you weren't there, you weren't supposed to be stuck in the past and you shouldn't worry about the future - there was nothing you could change, going both ways.

 

Though that didn't apply to Benny, he was stuck in his past and he was trying to shape his and her future. But he couldn't do that, not until he was content with his past, not until he came to terms with it.  
And not until he recognized he couldn't change it and he would just have to deal with it; then he would have to realise you can never plan for the future and if you do, it's going to end up worse for you, that or its gonna turn out different than what you planned.  
Which is why she tried not to plan things out, all she knew was to go with the flow and try not to change anything in your past. Try to let things work out on their own and most certainly, avoid planning things out because there were so many things that could go wrong and all of them could go beyond your control.

 

Ettoreo took her hand lightly and led her away from the dance floor, still holding promises about dancing some more later, but he walked with a purpose, as if he had to do something.  
And he did; there was no way he wanted to this, he did not want to hurt Arizona or her brother and he would try to make sure that they would die.

He would make sure they stay alive, no matter the cost. But now... now it was the time when Van-Durven would try to get them...  
Ettoreo raised his head after a moment and turned his head to look around - and then he saw Mario, wipe his hands off with a napkin and then put it in his coat pocket, there was blood on it...

 

Had they gotten to Benny? Please don't let it be him! Please don't let it be him, then his eyes roamed over the crowds again and he didn't see the man, he didn't see him.  
This wasn't supposed to happen... he thought, he...

Ettoreo swallowed thickly and let go of Ari's hand before she noticed it getting sweaty, his plan wasn't ruined, it wasn't.   
Benjamin was stronger than that, he had to be stronger than that, please. He didn't want Ari to be broken; "Ettoreo?" She asked him when she noticed that he was fidgeting with his hands for a moment, a sure sign if nervousness because her sister would always do it.

Then shed pretend that nothing was wrong, just to make sure Ari was okay.  
"Huh? What, oh, I need to go to the bathroom. Can you wait here for me?" He asked, turning around and it was surely a miracle that he was wearing his mask, because if he wasn't... she would probably be able to see right through him without a problem and then question him until be breaks, which he could not break, not now.

 

He needed to go to see Mario, inform him where Ari was and then sneak past the man to go find Benny and check on him - only to see if he was alive... or not. He probably could even pull this off without that man. He needed him, alive, in bad condition or not.  
The woman he was dancing with, made a face in his direction before she gave a slight nod and patted his shoulder, feeling a bit worried for whatever reason and he couldn't even assure her, but all he did was smile to her and then he walked off, hoping that she didn't notice he was going the opposite of the bathrooms.

 

~

 

She did notice, after a couple of seconds of staring off into space, she raised her head to see Ettoreo turn around a corner to a hall, that most certainly did not lead to where the bathrooms were supposed to be.  
And what was he doing? She knew following after him would not be a good idea, that she should just leave him to his own devices, but she couldn't because curiosity had gotten the better of her.

It usually doesn't happen, but when it does, there is a very good reason for curiosity to pop up out of nowhere.  
And when she took a step, she was stopped by men without masks, a rather tall blonde one, and a brown haired one.

"Excuse me-" a hand wrapped around her arm and it belonged to the man with brown hair, "I've been waiting to get my hands on you, ever since I saw you-" he started to say, his Italian accent think, heavy... it was nearly hard to understand the words he was saying.  
But she managed to understand it, crystal clear and boy was she píssed off that some perverts had stopped her, "Get the fück off of me before I know your teeth out." She threatened, and though she was in a dress, she wouldn't be afraid to kick both of their ässes, even if one weighed a hundred pounds more than her.

 

"Whoa," the blonde said, his voice rich and smooth as he stepped behind her, making her attempt to turn around and glare at him with all the anger she could muster up, even though she was now feeling a slight whiff of fear. But the extremely right grip on her upper arm from the dark haired man stopped her from turning - where was Benny at?  
This was a time where she could use her brother, right now...  
"we have a feisty one." The blonde joked, but his voice was very dark as he stepped close behind her and then she tried to shy away, immediately cocking her arm back to punch the brown haired man in the face so she could get away and find Ettoreo.

But her attempts at saving herself were put to a halt as a knife pushed against her back, "Don't you even think about it." Ari froze for a moment and then slowly lowered her fist, her breathing quickened just a bit because she was now terrified, her brother wasn't here and Ettoreo was nowhere to be found... was she getting kidnapped?

Oh... hell... no.

 

"Walk forward, move. Now." The blonde said as he pushed the knife forward, jabbing it into her back and making her take a step forward, making her breath quicken an she didn't know why she didn't just run away. Don't because she was wearing heels that didn't allow her to run very far, and if she made a sudden movement, cry out for help, she was sure that the man would stab her in the back.

And just for a brief moment, she remembered the gun that her brother had, she remembered that she held in it in her hands and then... she gave it back to him. She gave it back to him...  
She shouldn't have. Oh, God. That was why... this was why... 

Now Arizona knew the feeling of regret... one that could cost her life - all because she didn't keep the gun. If she did, then her life might... be spared. The only thing she could do was listen (to) and obey every thing they said, nearly no matter the cost...

Anything to make it out alive. But... what about her brother? And Ettoreo? Surely they would realise she was missing...  
Surely.

 

~

 

"Ah- ow." Ari complained under her breath as she was shoved in the back of the van and quickly handcuffed to the side, her arms above her head and she felt exposed, but she really couldn't fight expect for kicking them, but they were out of range or she'd hurt her arms attempting it.

The brown haired man sat across from her and the blonde beside her, "Where the hell are you taking me?!" She demanded, pulling against the chains and growling out her anger, only to disguise her true feelings of fear from them.  
The brown haired man smirked and the blonde looked away from her, looking like he was waiting for someone.

And then the doors open and she /watched/ as Ettoreo /willingly/ stepped into the van and glanced at her. His face neutral.  
"What took you so long?" The blonde asked, hitting the side of the van, as if to alert the drivers they were ready to go.  
Ari was in a fit of shock, it was hard to breath and even harder to register what she was seeing, it wasn't hard to try and connect the dots. But her mind just plunged deep into denial.

"You didn't finish the job."  
"What... Where is my brother?! What did you do to him?" Ari shouted, the anger and betrayal clear in her voice, then she looked to his pale hands and she stopped all together.

 

Then his cold, emotionless, golden eyes stared at her - not caring that she was looking at his blood stained hands.

 

"He's dead."


	33. Chapter 33

The car ride was a silent one, a long and silent one. No one spoke a word, no one made any noise at all and Ari... she was so deep in denial, she had a hard time believing what was real and what wasn't real.  
She didn't know anything anymore, she felt like the trust she had put in Ettoreo had just been taken away and stepped on.

It wasn't hard to get her trust, but it was hard to earn her love, earn the love that meant she cared for someone. Benny was right, her brother had been right. There was something off, there was something so very wrong.  
She was in denial, she was hoping for this to be a dream, she was hoping that Ettoreo would start laughing and the van would stop and Benny would be there and they were talking about the prank they pulled on her to make her learn about trust.

That she should be more careful about who she gave it to. That she should be more guarded, that she should get to know the person before she willingly gave her trust to them.

 

And now Ari was furious, in denial... angry. She didn't believe her brother was dead, it wasn't that easy to kill him. She knew that - she just had a feeling that he was still alive, that he wouldn't abandon her like that. But she had no idea how he would still be alive, she didn't know, but her mind would not allow her to believe it. She was just stubborn enough to not believe it.

 

Ari's bright green eyes turned to Ettoreo and she was filled with such disgust just looking at him, mustering up all the hate she could and sending it in his direction, a sense of betrayal was still inside of her mind - for whatever reason, it shouldn't be there because she didn't know this man.  
She didn't know him anymore and she barely knew him, they weren't friends at all. She she couldn't, shouldn't, feel betrayed by his actions.

 

But she did, because she misjudged him, because she listened to herself and not her brother, who knew something was off, she was blinded by ignorance...  
Blinded by what she wanted to see, not what was. She was an idiot.

 

But fear... there was always fear. For once, she was afraid of the unknown. She wanted to know who they were, why they took her and... just... why, she wanted to know why she didn't fight, she wanted to know why Ettoreo did what he did, and she wanted to know if her brother was really dead.  
A thought that grim thought made her shiver in fear, hoping that they wouldn't become a reality, she didn't want him gone. As in, gone forever.

She wanted to know he was still alive and alright... But she didn't know, the unknown was scary. Arizona knew that now, senses of dread for things you didn't know, so many possible outcomes running around in your head and no time to prepare for them.

 

She couldn't run from these people. They'd catch her.  
She couldn't fight them. They'd best her.  
There wasn't a God-damm thing she could do to get herself away. The only thing Ari could do, was right to stay alive and do everything they told her to do. The thing was, she didn't want to do anything for them.

 

It wasn't like she had a choice in the matter.

 

~

 

After a few minutes of sitting in silence, the van continued to drive for a minute longer before it slowly came to a stop.  
And that's when the panic rose to her chest, making her inhale sharply and tense for what would come next, sharp-green-eyes glaring at anyone who dare moved. By now, Ettoreo's shoulders had sagged completely and he refused to look anywhere, but at the floor, his face was hidden by his hair, which had been let out of its ponytail.  
Perhaps so he could purposely cover his face... to hide the from Ari's piercing gaze.

 

"We're here, better get the cargo out." The brown haired man spoke, but he was talking in Italian. She was so glad she learned it, and didn't tell anyone. So when could hear what others were saying and they wouldn't even know about it. Ari shifted in her seat and sent a glare to the man as he slowly stood up, a grin on his face that was... all the evil in the world.

 

And no, no one was going to touch her. And she would make that perfectly clear, the masked woman sat up a bit straighter and glared at him, waiting until he came close enough, and then her foot struck out.  
It was not her fault that he had his legs opened to where she could easily kick him in the balls.

It was also not her fault for kicking him in the knees while he was in pain, and not her fault that she got two, well aimed kicks (one on his neck and the other on his face) to his body. It was his fault that the very thought of looking at her came to his mind and then acting on it, so she was teaching him a lesson, right now.

And then the next thing she knew, the blonde man was standing up, knife in hand and he was going to secure her. He thought he was being aware of where her legs were, but supposedly not - because she kicked her left let out and tripped the man so his head hit against the van wall, and the next thing Ari did was kick him in the stomach, knocking the wind out of him and making him gasp in pain.

 

Her attempts were actually waisted because she was still chained up, but now they knew that she wasn't afraid to give people a kick where they really deserved it.  
And now they knew she was angry and she did not want any part of what they thought they could give her.

 

And the next thing she knew, was a very hard slap across her face, making her head snap to the side. Arizona quickly turned her head, green eyes furious, only to see Ettoreo standing there.  
His golden eyes were angry, there was a stinging in her cheek - a hint of wetness in her eyes as well, making her orbs shine with her anger, fear, sadness and betrayal. All from looking at him, and she was so angry, but paralyzed with fear of what he would do to her.

 

He didn't do anything that would cause her pain, instead, he took the mask off of her face. Which was a mistake on his part, if he even cared for her...  
Her face just showed more of the sadness and fear, and she... was just so scared without her big brother, without anyone to hold her close and protect her. Yes, Ari had been making a show when Benny was around, that she could be independent on her own and defend herself without him.

She would always pretend she didn't need him when everything was okay, but now that nothing was okay... She was more scared than ever, and all she wanted was her brother.  
She wanted him back, alive...

 

Arizona didn't want him gone forever, she didn't want him gone. She didn't want to be alone with men who now had a bloodlust, who wanted to kill her and she didn't want to be defenseless.  
With her fear bubbling to the top, Ari turned her head away and closed her eyes tightly, trying to show that she wasn't afraid no matter how afraid she actually was, she just couldn't stop the tears from trickling from her closed eyes and falling down her pale cheeks with nothing to hide them.

How could she be such a fool?

 

~

 

Ettoreo looked away the moment he saw the woman's face, it was taking a toll on him and it hurt him, to hurt her, to lie to her. And to slap her.  
But he was so... relieved that she believed everything, so it would make for a great show.  
And he did believe that Mario and Marcus had gotten what they deserved. Something he wished he could cheer her on with, something he wished he could help with - but his act wasn't over so soon.

He had to make sure he was the one handling her, all he needed to do was inform her of the situation.  
"I will bring her in." He spoke in Italian to Mario, helping him up and then getting Marcus to his feet - for the moment, Ari had stopped attacking the men.  
Mario held his side while helping the other man out, opening the door so he could get out.

"No funny business, Van-Durven would like her soon." Mario said as he started to limp into the grey warehouse, where everyone else would be, waiting for the girl that would serve as their new captive, for as long as they'd like her to be. After Ettoreo had watched the men to inside of the building, he quickly turned to Arizona and dropped down beside her, placing a hand on her thigh, gently. Enough to get her attention.

 

Her arms jerked and she tried to move away from his touch, "Get off of me." She snarled, even though she was angrier than hell, and more scared than a small rabbit with a pack of wolves.  
She didn't want his touch, she didn't want him and she didn't want to look at him.

"Arizona, stop it-" he was cut off when she suddenly lashed out and kicked him in his stomach, but it wasn't hard as it could be because of the angle in which she attempted to hurt him.  
"I said get off me!"  
"No! You need to trust me!" Ettoreo said as he sat back and pulled his hands from her, he knew that putting her trust in him again was the last thing she wanted to do.

 

And Ari stopped thrashing, giving him a look like he just asked her to jump off a building, "Trust you? You think I'm really going to do that? What Sid you do to my brother."  
He needed to let her in on part of the plan, only because he still wanted her to play a believable victim.

"He's not dead-"  
"Who's blood is that?" Ari sounded a bit more panicky, but slightly relieved, "It's Benny's, but I did not kill him. He is alive and coming for you; but Ari, these people want to hurt you in the worst possible way." Ettoreo paused as he set a hand on her leg again, "You need to trust me; I want to stop them. I don't want them to hurt you or your brother anymore - but I can't stop them unless you help me. They want to räpe you, but I... have to go first." Then he rushed to defend himself, finding his ear heating up because of it and he did not want to do this, against her will, "Believe me, I swear I don't want to do this. But if we are going to stop them from hurting people, I need your help and cooperation until your brother gets here."

She looked teary eyed as if she was torn on believing him and not believing him, and he was begging her to.  
"I'm sorry..." he whispered, not wanting to betray her trust the way he did, butcher wanted one more chance to prove that he wasn't like that, with her. He wasn't like that to her or her brother and he wanted one more chance, be wanted to make it up to her and... he was begging.

 

"It's not happening again, Ettoreo. I swear to God, I will kill you if you dare betray my trust again." Ari said as she finally made her decision to trust her, and she was going to.  
She was trusting her instincts, and she prayed that she would be right.

 

Ettoreo raised his head head after a moment and smiled - standing up silently, "I won't let anyone hurt you."  
Or, he will try. And this was a huge step, for the both of them. He hoped that Benny didn't collapse on the way and die.

Because he was the signal, and he had the guns.


	34. Chapter 34

And from the moment he was stabbed, he knew the wound wasn't fatal, it wasn't. Because he had been stabbed there, many times, for someone to cause pain, but not to damage anything internal. Why?

Someone who was obviously aiming to kill, didn't.  
Why? They could've, that man... But he didn't, instead, he stepped him in the most non-life-threatening area possible. Benny couldn't get under the man's skin, he was bleeding and in pain, he was stunned for a few seconds, his world a haze - watching. As the m with blue eyes, one other, walked away from him. And it was so hard to piece together, why he was alive.

It was hard to even breath because of the bruise, he was sure, that was forming on his stomach.  
That was probably why he was having such a hard time registering different things - but what he did know, he needed the damm mask off of him. So that was the first thing he did when he was able to control his arms, he put it down and winced in pain as the blow from his stomach was slowly fading. And he realised that was why he was stunned, why he barely felt the knife slide through him.

 

He was sorta grateful, sorta. It would be better if he hadn't been hit... now he was having a rather hard time keeping his eyes open...  
Benny grunted under his breath as he used his hand to press against the wound on his side, wincing in pain as he did so. A slight jolt going through him as he groaned, unhappily.  
This is what he gets for expecting something and then it never comes, he... got hurt and... Ari?  
Oh, no...

It was the man from the fight, the man who set out to hurt Ettoreo, the one that he played practically beat up and most likely gave him temporary amnesia, what if the man remembered who had knocked him unconscious?  
What if he set out to find Ettoreo, and in doing so, found Benny and gave him a taste of his own medicine?

What if they knew about Ari and took her?!  
Whoa... whoa, he just needed to calm himself down. That was going over the deep end, right? No one would take an innocent girl who hadn't done anything... right?

Benny hoped that was the case, even if a sickening feeling settled in his stomach, as if warning him about it and he knew he had to get up, he had to find his sister in this hellhole. It was hard to move, though... his limbs felt heavy and yes, it was even harder to keep his eyes open and get a thought inside of his mind that would stay, that would work with him.

 

"Benny? Oh, God. Cazzo." Came an Italian voice that dropped down beside him, quickly moving his hands away from the wound. He was alert at the voice, head raising up, eyes opening and he could barely make out Ettoreo's shape, "Ari..." was the first thing on his mind, did the man purposely leave his defenseless sister to fend for herself?  
He was so killing him, right after he regained his strength, "Listen - we don't have much time; something is going to happen to your sister, but I am going to be there with her." It was obvious that Benny was a little bit more alert when he heard that something was going to happen to his sister, and there wasn't a way he could stop it, not yet at least...

"I don't have time to explain, but I need you to come to forty fifth street, take this fun with you. Walk for five blocks, turn left when you come to an alley, right at the end of the fifth block - there will be a warehouse there, with a fence. But you need to find a way inside, that's where Ari and I will be.  
"You need to be there in thirty five minutes, take a car if you have to. But once you get in there, shoot the men you see, okay? I'm sorry, I can't explain anything else to you." Ettoreo said quickly, nearly cluttering his words together as he worked to bandage Benny's wound with the bandages he had brought, in case something like this happened.  
And yes, sometimes it was good to be prepared.

But sometimes, it was better to make sure it never happened. But nothing can be completely prevented.  
Benny honestly didn't have enough time or energy to wrap his head around what was going on, because something was telling him to just listen to Ettoreo and do as he was told, nothing else.

 

And all too soon, a gun was placed in his lap and the man was squeezing his shoulder, "Please, hurry. I promise to look after your sister." And with that, the dark haired man was gone, leaving Benny bandaged and with three weapons, a set of instructions and a feeling to kill.

If he wanted his sister safe, he needed to trust Ettoreo. It was the only way.

~

 

Her steps faltered a bit as Ettoreo (pretended to) drag her along while she pushed against him, fighting and actually allowing a bit of fear and anger to creep into her movements, she was angry at him for lying, angry at him for getting them in this mess, and yes. She was putting everything she had, which was her life, into his hands.

She was... putting her life in her brother's hands, who was likely half dead as he struggled to get himself here, a sense of panic and dread obviously filling up his chest the longer he took.  
But even though be was in pain, there was no way he was going to stop. Nothing... would, at least, that is what she hoped.

She hoped that darkness and exhaustion wouldn't take over his mind and cause him to collapse, leaving the two of them to fend for themselves and Ettoreo presented a number of reasons, as to why they couldn't just run and expect to be okay, others had guns.

They didn't have any guns, which is why Ettoreo was relying so heavily on her brother to get her, preferably in the next, five minutes... before he was ordered to...  
The thought made her shiver about, what these people do. They were going to make him to first... they kidnapped people and then... råped them.  
That word never settled with Arizona's stomach, and it made her bend over a tad and then retch, that word wouldn't ever sit right with her and it just... it made her want to run away, make Ettoreo let go of her so she could.  
Then she'd find her brother and they would leave, right away.

And... taking Ettoreo was an option, he was the one who put them into this mess... But he was here and trying to get them out, instead of hiding in the shadows.  
"I don't want to go in." Ari whispered as she stopped all together, making the Italian man stop as well, his grip tightened on her, in a sign that he wasn't going to let her go anytime soon.

"Ari, we need to do this now. Or else these people are going to continue to kill and kidnap others. Is that what you want? They aren't going to stop with you, or your brother. They're going to keep killing innocent people, even children." His eyes were hard and determined to finish this, whether Ari was going to cooperate or not.

Well, that was a lie, actually - he just needed her to go along with it, despite her fear. She wasn't the only one who was afraid, there was so many possibilities running through his head. All of them were possible and he wanted none of them to happen, but he knew things never go the way you planned them to go.

 

Most of the time; his plan was (luckily, brief), to have Benny here in five minutes, to kill people, to make sure none of this ever happens, ever again. And then find Bianca, to see if she was alive or not.  
He was just hoping and praying that she was alive, that he could help her because he didn't even get to say goodbye.

That was the worst feeling in the world, and he didn't even get to tell her he loved her.  
And he was sorry for the way he acted, sorry for not doing things sooner, tell her... that she was the only constant light in his life and these past few weeks, without her, they have been hell.

It has been dark and he had been lost, so lost until a new light, just somehow pushed into his darkness and chased it away, perhaps she was here to stay. He didn't know. Sometimes lights have better places to be, where the darkness wasn't - was one of them.  
But he... had so much darkness and he wished that it would go away because he wasn't a light anymore. And yes; even the light could fear darkness, but the light was strong enough to keep the darkness away.

He just hoped she'd stay.

 

"Please, I can't do this without you. And I know it's hard to be brave, but you have to be brave - you need to show me, and them, what you are capable of." He said as he held her hands next, thank God everyone was inside and probably (impatiently) waiting for them to get inside.  
And it was a good thing there were no cameras around.

But there was a new place they moved around, every month. So you couldn't exactly pin where they'd go next.  
That's why it was so hard for the police to find them - because these people were skilled, they knew what they were doing and they left no trace when they were doing it.

Ari glanced at him for a moment before she whimpered out, "What if Benny doesn't come?"  
And it was very hard to think of that outcome, but when he saw the man, after he told him what was going on... he looked wide awake, despite the pain and wanting to kill someone.

He just hoped the burst of anger gave him a spike to go on.  
But Ettoreo still didn't know what they would do if Benny clouding make it, he didn't have an answer and he wasn't sure if he'd ever have an answer, but all he knew was... they could hope. And by-God, that hope better not get yanked out of their hands.

 

"He's gonna come." Was all Ettoreo could say, hoping to reassure the girl, who was still not convinced, though her some of her trust was placed in him... she was now finding out how hard it was for Benny to trust someone, especially after they had toyed with it.  
Even if it was just a front, she hated being used like she was just a toy.

 

"We need to go, Ari." He said, readjusting their position, and she took a breath of air in, then she followed after him.


	35. Chapter 35

Forty... fifth, street... forty-fifth street to get to his sister... forty-fifth street, walk five blocks to get to his sister.  
Forty-fifth street, walk five blocks, turn left to get to his sister.  
Forty-fifth street, walk five blocks, turn left, climb the fence to get to his sister.  
Forty-fifth street, walk five blocks, turn left, climb the fence, walk into the warehouse to get to his sister.

Those instructions repeating in his mind as he sat in the back of the car that would take him down to the street he requested, no questions were asked, no words were spoken. Only because the man could see the awful condition Benjamin was in, pale face, blue lipped, dark eyes, hunched out and a shake in his hands with a limp in his step to go along with it.

He looked and felt like death, but his mind and practically numbed the pain of moving so it didn't hurt as much. But running, it made him want to ache, going after than a jog was something he couldn't do.  
But something he could do was kill. Which is what he was going to do, he was going to kill someone, or he was going to kill a lot of people. That or he would have to seriously injure them to the point of near death and then finish them off because there's nothing else they deserved.

And who the hell was 'they'? He didn't know, he didn't know much, he didn't even know if this was Ettoreo screwing with his head.  
But the man and Ari was not inside of the ball, they were gone and that was the first clue as to him telling the truth, but it might've taken Benny a lot of convincing, should he also not be in pain and allowing many things to run into his mind.

Like thinking how he could ever leave his sister, how he was silently cursing Ettoreo, praying that his sister was alive and... just having blind faith, and being blind was a scary thing for him.  
When he didn't know what was in front of him, beside him or around him... he just didn't know, but his instincts were telling him to trust Ettoreo, trust the man because...

 

There was no reason as to why he should, other than; his sister was gone and he was angry and he was in pain, he was in pain... Which meant that he couldn't form a coherent thought other than the instructions he was given, that was all he could think about, it repeating over and over again in his mind.  
Benny desperately wanted to hold on to one of the guns he had, just to make sure it was there, just to make sure he was safe and he could help his sister.

 

The moment they reached forty-fifth, Benny was out before the car had stopped, his hand pressing against his side lightly and wincing slightly as it throbbed just a bit, to remind him he was invincible and Death was always waiting around the corner, to catch him.  
Should he slip, miss a step and fall. He'll end up Death's arms and won't be able to escape unless he fought, he knew that feeling a few times. And always, he would manage to escape Death's arms...

When will his luck run out, when he can't fight Death any more? It wasn't likely that it would happen to him because he was strong, he was a warrior and he knew how to fight, he wasn't going to stop... at least, he wouldn't until he had nothing left to live for.  
His sister was still here, she was the only thing he had to live for. Once she decided she really had enough of him and decided that she could fend for herself, he wouldn't be fighting.  
Benny wouldn't willingly let himself die, but should he find himself knocking at Death's door, Death opens it and his arms, Benny will fall into them and let darkness envelop his life.

 

"Here." Benny muttered, finding haven't out of breath already - he took out some Italian currency and it was nearly everything he had, then he gave it to the taxi driver, finally limping off in the direction he needed to. And it was the only direction, he could go, was forward...  
Down empty and abandoned shops to where his sister was.

 

There were barely any lampposts, leaning him in near darkness, leaving him alone with his thoughts, leaving him to focus on his breathing, on the pain and anything else he could do to stop thinking about the worst possible outcome of all of this.  
Should he miss the timing (which Ettoreo was specific about), he could possibly kill his sister, he could kill himself and Ettoreo (which he certainly didn't care about at all - not so much at least).

 

But no matter the cost... he would make have to listen and trust Ettoreo, with everything. And yes, it would be hard.  
It was a big step for Benny...

Said man continued down the sidewalk, his ears ringing as he counted the blocks as they went by, and upon reaching to the fifth one, he stopped and tilted his head to the left. And that's when he saw a faint light, which now he was starting to fear he had died along the way here and that was actually the Light at the End of the Tunnel.  
But what choice did he have? That's right, he didn't have a choice. He just needed to keep going forward, one foot after the other. All he had to do was hold his head high and breath.

 

Which was hard, feeling the pain and intensify and holding his head up men at he either had to crane his neck in the wrong way (which hurt it), or he had to stand up straight and ignore the limp (which hurt even more and cause his wound to throb like there was no tomorrow.) - but he didn't do anything, he continued on like an old, broken man who was lost and confused.

 

He wasn't lost, physically - but mentally lost and confused, that was certainly true.  
Benny had no idea what he was doing, who he was shooting and why these people had his sister. All he knew was that... Ettoreo demanded him to do it, and it might be clear that this man had good intentions, that he actually liked Ari, that he cared for and wanted to make her safe.  
But the older sibling, he didn't believe that. He believed that everyone was against him and his sister, that there were no allies to help them, other than themselves.

 

His sister seemingly disagreed, and look where it got her. Treating everyone like an enemy was better than than treating everyone like a friend.  
Because there was more enemies than friends.

~

Benny had finally reached the end of the alley and he saw the dark brown warehouse, a white van and a couple of BMWs... all black. There was an eerie white light for a source and it gave him the chills just being there, but something also gave him courage to just go for it.  
Take what training he had - what little consciousness and all the strength in the world, he walked up to the fence, slowly... on my to observe if there were people patrolling or cameras capturing his every movement.

 

Thank God he didn't see anything, it was empty, everything was empty. Except for the inside, he'd bet that was occupied.  
The man swallowed and finally pushed the pain to the back of his mind while he moved his hand and took a hold of the glock Ettoreo had given him, the same one he happened to use at his (Ettoreo's) Uncle's shop.  
Which the grip was suddenly familiar and he felt something come over him, as if he felt better with a gun in his hands.  
And he did.

 

It felt better to know he could protect himself and his sister with this weapon, by simply pulling the trigger. And watching as blood splattered. As it soaked the ground in red, soaked the clothing... making you see... everything, in red. And for days, weeks, months; even years.... you couldn't even escape it.

 

All you could see, was red.

 

~

 

Benny sucked in a light breath as he tested the gate, pushed against it when he found no lock source and it was open. This was something that hadn't happened to him, ever. But it was a good thing that luck was on his side.  
And he pushed the gate open slowly, enough to where he would fit in. Then he led himself over to the warehouse, by the door where he could easily get in if he had to, when he had to.

The man exhaled slowly before looking down at his wrist, seeing his watch and releasing that he only had a minute left, and that minute could not go by any slower, especially with him hearing Arizona's screams of anger and fear.  
He could tell when she was acting, or he'd like to believe he could... but right now, Benny couldn't tell.

 

Panic was rising his chest and he had to fight himself, he had to tighten his grip on the gun, to prevent himself from just jumping in there and start shooting everyone.  
He needed to make all of these bullets count, even if he didn't know how many people resided inside of the building, he knew on my headshots would count.

And he knew that only he could get his sister out of this.  
"Get your fücking hands off of me!" His sister yelled, then a screech ripped from her throat; five, four, three, two... time stood still...

One.


	36. Chapter 36

He has learned, from the moment he became a detective - and the moments after, on every case he did, to never go into a suspect's hideout; when they are possibly armed and deadly, without backup.  
Did Benjamin ever listen to what they told him to do?

No! Technically, he never did. He would always plan things out, should he run into complications.  
And he would always make it out, a little banged up, but alive. Because he knew how to handle himself and those around him. As long as he had a plan, but guess what! Standing out here, outside of this warehouse, watching the long seconds tick by...

He realised that he didn't have a plan, he didn't know anything about these people.  
Well, he had an idea about who it was... but he didn't know everyone's weakness, but something told him he should shoot first and not ask questions. Ever, he just... needed to follow the instructions he was given.

 

~

 

And just as the last second ticked by, his hand tightened on the handle of the gun and he sucked in a breath and pushed the door open and then it felt like everything was in slow motion - Benny uttered six words before he started to pull the trigger; "Get the fück off my sister."

There was silence for one second, a pause in everyone before Benny had his gun up, faster than anyone in the room could. He pulled shot two men in the head, blood splattering and their hands going limp - dripping the automatics they had, falling to the ground.  
He needed those.

 

But instead of trying to go for them while everyone else was drawing drawing their guns to shoot at the intruder, he glanced to Arizona and Ettoreo, watching as he quickly pulled her to cover, behind a crate that had been abandoned, long with the warehouse.  
He needed the guns, he also needed to get to his sister before anyone else could and then get the both of them, out of this God-forsaken country, never to return.

 

Hell, it was like all of their vacations had some kind of bloodshed to it.  
That was what ran in Benny's mind as he quickly jumped back outside and slammed the door shut, then rolling to the side - in case any of the bullets that were now firing at the door, went through it and happened to pierce his skin.

And with that, Benny was now on his feet, his grip on his gun tighter as he passed a window without being seen (it was a murky one, hard to look out and see something if it was far away), there was some shouts coming from inside, but they were in the language that he didn't understand. But he knew that he had to find a new way in.

Every single vacation had bloodshed, every single one and it was starting to get on Benny's bad side, and he was about ready to put his foot down and say that they are never leaving the country that they live in, or the state.  
First vacation, his mom died, second one, Tina died.  
And here he was, on the third one and praying to God that no-one else was going to die because he was sick of loss ruling his life, over powering it and actually shaping who he was.

 

Why didn't he say that no one was going on this trip? He didn't know why, but now he was paying the price with more death on his hands... more.  
It shouldn't sit right with people, it didn't sit right with him. But he accepted that he killed these people and they weren't ever going back.

 

Benny paused as he tilted his head a bit to glance at one of the windows that was at the side of the building.  
And he couldn't help the devilish grin that came to his face as he watched someone start to walk past it. Now, this was not fun to him, the creative was he could do it, was fun to him.

Not killing people, he didn't enjoy that, but he knew it had to be done, sometimes. To make the world a better place, to keep your home safe, your family safe... but senseless killing was just that.  
Senseless.

Benny face the window and put his gun against it, level with the man's head before he pulled the trigger, turning his head away slightly to avoid the glass that broke and the loud noise it would make.  
But he was quick to reach his hand in and pull the handgun from the deadman's holster, he wouldn't need that anymore.

 

All guns were then turned to where the gunshot had came from and they opened fire, apparently, not caring whether their comrade was still alive. Their mission now, was to kill Benjamin Felocife.  
In anyway they could.

But he'd like to bet that they didn't have the skill set that he did, yes, theirs might be high... but his could be higher.  
And he was willing to bet that it was. He had just killed, three men, and had three guns without a scratch on him. (Despite the wound on his side that he just couldn't even feel anymore)

He needed to distract them, he had to get them to a different side of the warehouse before he attempted to get inside - Benny was pretty sure it was a good thing that the leader of this mafia thing, had stormed outside, shouting in Italian, he was obviously angry that they were interrupted, while Benny was more than glad that he had interrupted their ritual.

 

Other than not being able to understand the man, the tone of his voice was clear, ripe with anger and annoyance.  
It was still easy to avoid the man by going around the back and hiding there, his ears straining to hear if they were roughing around with his sister - if they were, he knew she would out up the biggest fight and never let them put a hand on her without getting kicked.

His sister hated unwanted touch's and she'd show you how much she hated them.  
Benny took in a breath as he listened to an order on two being barked out - car doors opening and closing and then tires squealing on the pavement and driving away.  
There was silence, Benny stayed right where he was for a couple seconds before he stood up and slowly crept around the warehouse, his eyes open, gun raised and feet careful of where he was stepping.

 

"Where is she?" There was a short scuffle as Benny was alerted that there was one person left in the building, pulling on a second person and questioning where his sister went to.  
"She ran out." Ettoreo responded with a calm voice, as if he was sure of himself.  
"Bugiardo." Then there was a there was a thump and a groan of pain, he needed to get himself in there before Ettoreo was damaged further, if his sister had decided to run out, she would've looked for Benny.

So he knew she hadn't gone yet, she was just hiding - probably hating the sound of Ettoreo getting hurt.  
Benny moved around to the front, where the door was and pushed it open; seeing Ettoreo on the ground, putting a hand to his stomach and gasping in pain.

Some guy with blonde hair was looking behind crates and he had a gun, Benny's mind screamed 'kill', and so, he was going to. He raised the gun up and pointed it at the man, just then, Ari came out of nowhere and yelled, "Take the shot!"

"Ari, no!" Ettoreo yelped when he saw her come out of her hiding place, and he was up on his feet, faster than the blonde guy stood up straight and point his gun at Benny. And suddenly, said man had his gun pointed to that blonde one, finger on the trigger - but something was stopping him.

The blonde man moved his gun to now point at Ari, "Now you're gonna point it at me." She said sarcastically, obviously not very threatened by it.  
"I will shoot her."  
"I don't care if he shoots me, Benny, take the shot!" Ari said as she glared to her brother, "I care if you get shot." Benny tried to reason with his clearly delirious sister, adjusting his grip on the gun because he wasn't going to take the shot. He wouldn't, not until his sister was somewhere safe. And alive.

 

"God-da" Ari was suddenly cut off when the blonde, moved and grabbed her, placing a gun to her head and holding her in front of him.  
And then Benny took a look at his eyes and who it was, clicked immediately. Everything had been moving too fast for him to get a proper look, and it was the same man... even though anger had now registered in his brain, he did not let any emotions show on his face.

"Look, I don't want to hurt you-" the man began, but he didn't move the gun.  
"Said the man who has the gun to my head, says the man who put a knife to my back." Ari said as she stood there, her green eyes angry as she glared at her brother, trying to tell him to just do it, but there was no way in hell...

"Says the man who stabbed me." Benny added, making Ari narrow her eyes and the man sigh just slightly, "Yes - I stabbed you, but did I kill you? Yes, I have a gun to your head, but am I pulling the trigger?" The man asked, slowly lowering the gun away from her head and taking a step away, "My father is Van-Durvan. He runs the mafia, I am sick and tired of him killing and kidnapping people."

Ari was soon beside her brother, who still didn't lower the gun, but was listening to the man.

 

"And I need your help."


	37. Chapter 37

"Our help?" Ettoreo asked as he rubbed his stomach lightly, golden eyes regarding Mario, his eyes narrowed and he was wary of the man. The son of Van-Durven, who ran the mafia... how were they to know that he wasn't trying to manipulate them? What if he was telling the truth?  
What if he just wanted to gain their trust, just to gain his father's approval?

There were two voices inside of his mind. One telling him to not trust Mario, who threatened Ari's life (a big no-no), he stabbed Benny, and he punched him twice. Both times aiming for the kidneys. On the same side.  
And then there was the other side of him, telling him to just look into Mario's eyes and look at his posture and hear his words, that sounds so true and sincere... well, anyone could be an actor.

"I know you want the mafia gone, I know you want your family safe and I know you want Bianca back- I can help you get all of that."  
Ettoreo's eyes instantly raised up and he took a step over to the man, hope in his eyes as he heard the name of his aunt, "Bianca? She's okay? Where is she?" Ettoreo started to demand of him... if Bianca was still alive... then, yes, they had to go, to get her, help her and bring her back to his life.

"I can help you get her back, but you need to do exactly as I say." Mario stated as be put the gun away in the waist band of his dress pants. As he stepped over to them, Ari glanced down at her still poofy dress that she obviously didn't want to wear if they were going to go kick äss.  
"How do we know we can trust you?" Benny asked, the one who had the trust issues, especially with people who kidnapped his sister, threatened her, stabbed him and then was the son of the mafia boss. And though the last part couldn't be helped, every thing else could and talking about trust, putting it into people who he didn't know, it made him uncomfortable. It made him very uncomfortable.

Sick to his stomach, unsettled, angry... trust was a hard thing to come by, his actually. And he wasn't willing to hand it over to some one who threatened him, a friend and his sister.  
He actually wanted to kill this man, but apparently, Ettoreo would have none of it because he heard a familiar name, one that had sparked his interest, gave him life. Realising that the reason why he was here in the first place... but the name was very familiar to him...

 

Benny lowered his gun when Ettoreo turned to him and it a hand on his shoulder, a light one and... it was friendly, gentle. A touch that he was actually only expecting from his sister, but he still did flinch away.  
"Do you trust me?"  
It was a deep question, for Benny at least. He had trusted the man to keep his sister safe, and he... succeeded, somewhat at least. And there wasn't a choice he had in matter, that he was sure about. It wouldn't be likely that they would get home unless they fought their way home.

Nearly every vacation taught him that. And now, he knew it was true, but you'd have to put your trust in someone, other than the people you knew... maybe just this once he will give up every thing he held close to himself. It was basically like asking him to... stop being himself.  
And out his sister's life on the line, but who was he to risk someone else's life? To take control and chose whether they live or die, he always had that option when be was holding the gun. But he'd never turn his gun to people who don't deserve it, so why should he do it now when he's never done it before?

 

"I trust you." Three words that put his life on the line, his sister's life. It was hard to do so, it was. But maybe he had a slight relief to it, though he was still wary - waiting and ready for anything else. He knew he could handle himself if anything went wrong.  
Ari was obviously impressed with his choice of words and the tone that he said them in, afraid, but ready to try it. Just once, if that was possible. He'd prefer it to be once and only once because the feeling of not being in control all the time was frightening, apparently so.

 

~

 

"Good, you need to listen to me. Give me the gun." Mario said after a second, taking a step up to Benny, which he didn't like. He took a step back and sent all the hate he could in the man's direction, "If I wanted to kill you, I would've already."  
It was a bit unsettling if you asked Benny, but he knew it was the truth. He could hold his own for a bit... but them, this man might have another way to take him down.

Even though Benny knew nearly every kind of attack, counter and defense... he didn't know his enemy, which was better if you had control of the situation, or a weapon to defend yourself.  
Which is why he felt better armed. And not so much when other people had weapons.

 

"Fine." Benny, said, but he dropped the clip from the gun (there was a few bullets left, eleven. One was already loaded so he was taking that out.), then the louder bullet. Finally he held his hand out for the other gun, the one that belonged to Mario and he would not tell anyone of his own gun that was hidden, he was keeping that to himself.  
Mario handed it over and allowed him to drop the clip and the loaded bullet, "I'm keeping these, but you can have this." Benny said as he put the gun back in his hand and then popped out the bullets, doing it quickly because he figured they would be on a time limit.

 

And soon he had the bullets, sending the clip back to Mario before putting the bullets in his pockets, now he felt better. But he knew that his life, which was place in Ettoreo's hands, will now be placed in this man's hands.  
Not a fun feeling, but he didn't have a choice, around this. That he was sure about, and naturally, he wasn't one to stray from a fight.

"Alright, I'm going to act like I kidnapped you." He said to the Felocife spawns, holding out some zip ties.  
Ettoreo took those and then looked to the both of them - Ari held her wrists out and gave him a wary smile. Ettoreo bound her wrists together, not too tightly - but not loose enough to make it look like they could get out with ease.

Benny didn't like being tied, he hated it, he feared being completely immobile. Not being able to do anything to fight back, not being able to protect. But he already said that he trusted Ettoreo, so acting on it was the only thing he could do. And though he worked his jaw and held his wrists out tensly, his guide was doing it the saw way he did Ari's, perhaps even a bit more loose because he could sense his unease.

 

"Here..." Mario muttered as he walked up to Ari, "I need to make it look like you had a struggle." And with that, he started to rip her dress. Just the shoulder parts and then the near bottom of the dress.  
"Alright," and then with that, he led them over to a car that was left there for the man to take back, should he find the people.

 

"Act like I hit you hard." Mario advised as he put a bag over Benny's head, then closed the car door. Benny did the same with Ari and finally, the two siblings leaned against each other and just breathed. Praying and hoping that they'd be okay, that this was not what they wasted their life on... 

 

~

 

The ride was not as long as they'd expect it, not as short to be considered going in circles. The ride was silent, Benny was trying to figure things out in his head, he was trying to breath right, he was just trying to not lose his mind, confined in darkness and fear.

But the moment they got there, when he felt then role to a stop, when he heard the window roll down - his breath hitched and he froze completely, listening for sounds of others, and he heard it.  
But he didn't understand it, they were talking in Italian to keep the others out of it, should they be faking it...

Or it was the only language the man working at the gate knew.  
Whatever the reason, it didn't matter because now they were going down a gravel road, turning just slightly and soon the whole car stopped.  
"Alright, were here." The man said as he quickly left the car and came around to open the door. Then he quickly released Benny from his thoughts and stepped back so he was able to get stand up properly and gasp for some fresh air, he really needed it because he was feeling an awful pain in his side that was becoming more bothersome.

The stab wound, he could really do without. Though he could go on if there was no way he could get rid of it - it was easy to numb the pain as long as his mind was completely distracted.  
"Bianca is in the basement - I will take Arizona with me to go get her, Ettoreo - you should take Benjamin with you. Now- how you get into the basement." But before Mario could continue talking, Ettoreo interrupted him, "Go around to the gardens, near an old oak, there is a door, an old one. Not locked, there is a latter that leads you down into the basement, follow the hallway, turn to the right at the end and follow it down the stairs." And then the man blinked and looked around, his whole face full of confusion as to how he knew that.

"Right... should you two need to make an escape to the basement, or feel like meeting us there..." Mario said as he too gave a curious look the man who was looking to the garden, a small frown playing on his face as he wondered how on earth he knew that, he hadn't been here before... Right? While the villa looked familiar... it wasn't enough to spark memories.  
"That way and the way where you can get in through the door in the closet on the left side of the stairs..." Ettoreo said as he turned and walked over to them, still not understanding how on earth he knew this, he must've been here before a couple of times.

He hoped that was the case. And then, he was beside Benny placing a hand in his shoulder and looking him in the eyes, despite the rising nervousness in his stomach, "Lets do this."

 

~

 

And so this was why he didn't want to go in. Because of the welcome he and Benny received, the darkness inside of the very familiar villa...

 

"Welcome back, Elpidio Van-Durven, I've been waiting for your return."


	38. Chapter 38

Benny and Ettoreo shared a glance as the both of them slowed just a bit, but they still held their guns and were both suddenly looking out for the man who had spoken, a bullet to the head and this would be all over. All of it, he would have finished what he needed to do. But it was so dark, even when their eyes had gotten adjusted, they couldn't see the man.  
And they were tense, hoping he couldn't see them and hoping he didn't have a gun pointed at the both of their heads.

"I think you've gone off your rocker, Van-Durven." Ettoreo said as suddenly, him and Benny were now back to back, moving around the room slowly, listening and waiting for any movements that would suggest the man's position. And yet Ettoreo was acting cocky, the name made his stomach sink, his golden eyes blink and his breath quicken slightly.  
He knew he had heard such a name before. But it wasn't his and it certainly didn't belong with that last name, perhaps an old friend. He hoped.

"But am I? You've heard such a name before, Elpidio." The man sneered from his hiding spot in the shadows, Ettoreo quickly turned and pointed it where he heard the voice come from, but for whatever reason, he didn't shoot.  
Maybe it was fear that he didn't, maybe it was curiosity, but he didn't shoot. Not yet, but he swore he would shoot this man, "Stop it! Stop calling me that, that's not my name." He said determinedly, if the man was mixing his name up with someone else's... he was sure he had gone off the rocker.

 

"Oh, that is right. That is your mother's name for you, I preferred Ettoreo." And that fueled his anger because this man knew nothing, he didn't know what he was talking about.  
Ettoreo fired twice at where he heard the voice, but apparently, when he had been talking, he was also moving and Ettoreo was only listening to the rage in his ears to follow him. Because the next thing he knew - his arm was twisted behind his back and he had to drop the gun. Only because of the pain that was running up and down his arm, and then the sudden pain in his scalp as Van-Durven grabbed his hair and jerked it back, "And this is why we don't have hair like this. So easy for someone to control you." Ettoreo groaned as his neck was exposed, his golden eyes slipping closed as he tried not to since in pain, and failing because this man had a tight grip on his hair.

 

Benny had moved away with lightning speed, more fear than anything else promoting him to move. Because he wasn't invincible, he was afraid right now, because he left his sister alone with Mario, but he knew she could handle herself... he hoped that she could. And now he was in this really weird house, he couldn't see anything and Van-Durven was the monster lurking in the shadows who now had someone who... he trusted, who trusted him and it was not going to end this way, this was the last vacation where somebody died because of him. Not. Anymore.

"Let him go." Benny said as he tried to steel his nerves, his hand wasn't shaking as much and his voice was stronger than he planned it to be. Which was a better outcome, and he was glad he was standing up to death.  
Glaring at the man who had surprisingly light... hazel eyes, a bald head and a rather fat face. But all-in-all, he was a powerful man who had overpowered Ettoreo.

 

"Set the gun down, Benjamin. Come over to me, then, we can all talk." As if Benny was falling for that trick, he knew it was a sure death sentence if he didn't run, but he might be able to talk the man into letting Ettoreo go.  
It was probably one of the stupidest things he was considering, and another certain Italian reminded him of it, "Benny, don't do it. You need to run. Just go, it doesn't matter if I die." Ettoreo tried to reason, and then he groaned and arched up slightly as his wrist was starting to be twisted behind his back because of the crazy man who held him, who was breathing, smirking, in his ear. And the feeling just sent a shiver down his bent spine.

It was all too familiar, but there was no exact memory...  
"Yes it does, it matter to Ari, it matters to Bianca and it matters to me." Benny said as he finally made his decision, and yes. Those words were true and there was no way he was letting Ettoreo die like this.  
And though Benny didn't know how deep it touched the Italian man, whom they have grown to know, it touched him right down to the bottom of his heart, even if he didn't mean it.

Even if.

 

~

 

"That's it. Now turn to the left." That's how he was being instructed, like a dog, and he was willingly following the commands, or doing so without fighting back, even though he really wanted to kick the man in the crotch, he clouding because he was still holding Ettoreo and relishing in the noises he made, all because he was bringing him pain.  
He was like a sadist... Like one, Benny didn't really expect this man to get off on this... at least he hoped not.

 

Benny turned left when he was commanded to and he came face-to-face with a door that he assumed wanted to be opened, so he opened it and took a glance to the mafia leader before he tripped over a standing chair, in the room it was completely blue-grey with a metal table and chairs. He figured that was where he was supposed to go, so he sat down and then turned his eyes to the head of the organization.

The man let go of Ettoreo and watched as he sat in a chair, then came around to another one, facing Ettoreo and on the left of Benny, who watched him with wary eyes. But he realised this would be a conversation between those two men, so he stayed silent.

 

It nearly felt like forever until someone spoke, but it was not a good feeling when he started to speak, "My name is Robert Van-Durven. You are Benjamin Felocife, and you... are Elpidio Van-Durven."  
"That is not my name." Ettoreo replied, anger in his voice as his golden eyes were sharp and unaccepting of what this man would say, because there was no reason he could believe him. He refused to.

 

"Your mother-"  
"My mother is dead, because of you." Came the furious snap, the only way he could show his hate for now. All he could do was just sit here for now and let his wrist get back to normal.  
"Is that what they are telling you?" It looked like it was all just a game, just to him and he was so amused by it, "And what of your father?"  
"He died trying to save her." Talking about the parents he really didn't know wasn't as hard as he expected, but he knew he could use that as more reasons to not believe what the man said. 

Van-Durven was silent for a couple of seconds, just staring at Ettoreo, then he grinned slightly and slowly stood up, "Those Argenzianos do know how to spin a tale, I'm impressed."  
Yeah, well, Ettoreo was not; he was angry, frustrated and confused because he didn't have a clue who 'Elpidio' was, he didn't have a clue as to who the 'Argenzianos' were, and it was driving him crazy because he didn't know. He was about read to snap when suddenly, Van-Durven was right next to him and grabbing onto his shoulder, tightly.

"Tell me, what do you remember about your childhood?" And then, he let go of his shoulder and started to stalk around the table, keeping his eyes on the man with the golden orbs, they were filled with hate, but they didn't hide secrets as he started to talk about something that he remembered, nearly everyday.  
"I remember, putting a car in a bathtub full of paints, with my best friend. I remember Maria coming in there and scolding us, and I remember when the cat ran out and made a mess. Marcelino was rather angry with us... He only separated us from each other for awhile and then took turns helping to clean." Robert play grinned at the answer that was received as he then walked back over to Ettoreo.

"And you are sure it was Luciano?" And that was the question he was dreading, because in reality, he wasn't sure. At all, he had no idea. But...  
"Y-yes."  
"Wrong!" He suddenly shouted, making both of the other men flinch in their seats. And before he could stop it, there was a hand in his hair and his head was being slammed on the table. Just once and then every thing was spinning, just... suddenly.

 

And memories just came flooding back to him, and he remembered so many things that he remembered why he didn't want to remember. And there was so much horror in his eyes, in his mind.  
Plain fear and anger and disbelief, wishing that these were just dreams that he remembered. But it wasn't. He knew it was the moment he turned to look at Van-Durven, he had started to accept it the moment he had drove up to the driveway. The moment he remembered where the basement was, the moment he heard the name... the moment when he knew Bianca was gone.

 

"Now you see it, don't you boy?" Van-Durven asked with a grin as he stood back, "You're home now. Where you belong."


	39. Chapter 39

"If this is a trap, I hope you know that I will snap your neck." Arizona threatened as she and Mario walked along the path that lead to the garden, she had to hold her dress up just a bit, it was a force of habit to do that, make sure that the dress didn't get dirty, but it was already ripped and dirty, so she really couldn't do anything more to make sure it stayed nice.  
Oh well...

But she was also holding it up so she wouldn't trip in it, and this thing was hard to fight in, honestly. She wished, that if she had to be kidnapped, it would've been in different clothes.  
It was not her fault for getting kidnapped, but it was her fault for even deciding to go on this trip. And she was grateful that she brought her brother along - he created chaos in the best way. The way he could easily make people panic and rush around, and she was so happy that he came in at that very moment because there would be no prolonging what all those other men wanted, and the fact that he /killed/ people... she didn't mind.

Ari honestly didn't care, not one bit. They were threatening her safety, his and all he ever wanted to do was protect her from that, whatever way he could. And he achieved that.  
And... she couldn't be angry with him for what he did, there was no reason. She was still alive because of him.

 

And maybe, because of this man (whom looked similar to Ettoreo), hey would get Ettoreo's aunt out of here alive. Ari knew what Benny and the other was doing, they were finding the leader of this 'mafia' thing, and they would put an end to him.  
Which was a good thing, from what she heard, they kidnapped and killed people - using the Auditore's hotel as a source.

 

Maybe they were forced into it - before what happened with Ettoreo and 'Van-Durven'.   
It was all one big 'maybe'. She didn't know a thing and it wasn't like anyone was going tell her anytime soon. She could just assume for now until the truth was really told.

 

Mario turned his head slightly to look at the girl who was probably more violent than she liked to show, or she was just that way because that he had kidnapped her, put a knife to her back and then stabbed her brother, none of those things he wanted to do.  
He had to do it - or else he's never escape, or else, no one else would ever escape until his father died.

Mario just couldn't sit around, helping and letting them get hurt, get killed and taken away from their families. Yes, he did play a part in this, he played a very big part that he wish he didn't.  
He hated himself for everything he had done and he wished he could just take it all back, but Arizona didn't know that. She didn't know every little detail of his life and it was hard for her to recognize it unless she was told.

And by-God, he needed her to believe and trust him - that was the only way they'd be making it out alive.  
So he stopped, and grabbed her shoulder, turning her to face him before he grabbed her other shoulder and held her loosely, "Listen to me; if this was a trap, you would be dead right now; I have spent my whole life here, surrounded by all of this darkness. Ever since I was seven years old, I am sick and tired of it. I need your help, Ettoreo's help and Benjamin's help to get all of us and the people down there, out of here alive. And I need my father killed."

 

She looked frightened for a split second, her green eyes wide and her hands curled into fists because she was ready to punch him for moving so suddenly and grabbing her.  
But then she looked into the blue orbs of his and listened to what he had to say, though she was no detective, she could tell that this man was telling the truth, it was almost as if she could see that events of his past. And it was rather heartbreaking, at least, she'd like to think so because she could sympathize with all people. Or at least try to.

It was easier for her to give trust and understand people - while forgiving and letting go were harder things for her.  
She understood his pain, or she would try. Do grow up with a life, full of death, who would want that? She would never want that for someone.

 

"Okay, I trust you." She said, answering his unspoken question. And it was almost as if the weight of the world had been lifted off of his shoulders and he made a soft noise of relief.  
"Thank you." And then silence as he took his hands off of her shoulders, finally, they continued on their way with Ari hoping that she didn't just endanger her and her brother's life by trusting this person.

She also hoped that he was okay.

 

~

 

"Get your fu-" a quick punch to the face made him sputter and feel stunned for a brief moment.  
Then pain registered as blood trickled from his nose, dripping onto the metal desk. And he didn't act on it, his face, nor his eyes, showed the pain that he was really feeling. And he didn't go to stop the blood, instead, he was just glaring. Despite the tears that happened to gather in his eyes, and despite the man, who would soon have a bruise forming on his head, looking at him. Then back to the other in the room with disbelief.

And all was silent because there was no reason to talk, no one had anything to say because silence was the best rage.  
But the silence didn't last long because the man who would have a bruise, needed answers. He was in disbelief of his parentage, thinking and knowing everything was a lie.

Should he had gotten a longer look at Mario Van-Durven, he could've easily connect him to Ettoreo. He could've because that was what he was good at.

 

"Bianca... she... is..? She lied to me?" Ettoreo started to speak as he searched his mind for answers.  
And then he remembered as he watched his father pick up... his twin. His brother. And then walk away with him. He remembered feeling hope, hoping that he'd come back.

His father did, but his twin, Maso, was gone. He asked questions, but that resulted in a slap from his father - he remembered turning around, teary eyed and watching his mother, watching Bianca, sitting on the steps, holding onto her ankle and crying, reaching out to him. Begging Robert not to take her children away.

And he remembered struggling just a bit, crying out for his mother. For his brother and just wanting it all to be over, and he remembered the determination after he was put inside of the car, looking out the back window and crying silently, he remembered, promising himself; as his small hand touched the back window to where his mother was, that he'd bring his real family back together.  
That he wouldn't ever forget this, that he'd get rid of the evil man who claimed to be his father - and get his brother back.

And then he remembered being brought to the Auditores, who weren't... Auditores. They became his parents, his father gave him a new name... And gradually, that memory disappeared.  
And didn't come back when he went over to his mother's house, with her posing as his aunt and she never told him... But he remembered her crying... And he remembered hugging her, and then he remembered her crying harder.

 

There was also this memory, with him and Maso... And they had a cat, they had a cat. And they had a lot of paint, which they mixed with water in the bathtub after trapping the cat in there with them.  
The car was sitting on the rim, and Maso, deciding to be funny, pushed the cat in the bathtub. And the cat was white, he was all white and he was furious at the twins.

But he and his brother wanted to get in with him... though before they could... Bianca came in and accidentally let the cat out and they watched as he got paint, practically everywhere.  
And he was six years old at that time, a year before he was taken from his mother.

Their father was so angry, they almost got a lashing... but their mother talked him out of it and suggested separating them (oh how it hurt her to do that), and then make them help clean up the mess.  
Which he accepted.

And that day, they spent apart from each other. And he hadn't ever felt so... incomplete without his twin.  
Especially right now as the realization dawned on him, that Mario was his brother.

 

"How could you?" Ettoreo growled out as he raised his head up and glared at Van-Durven, everything, his whole life a lie and he was left feeling empty and hopeless, raised by people who were nearly as sick as him.  
And now, he had his mother.

 

"Well, I need someone to run the mafia after I am finished..." he said as he watched Ettoreo stand up, a very angry look in his eyes. The golden orbs that were similar to the ones that Van-Durven had.  
"And what makes you think it would be me?" His tone dropping down, it was low, angry and very deadly, "Why can't Mario be your little puppet?" He didn't actually want to put... Mario... on the spot, he just wanted to know why this man was targeting him.

"Your brother... is weak. He doesn't have the stomach for killing." Van-Durven explained as he started to walk back over to his son. While Benny just sat there, allowing blood to run down his face, and just watching them. Waiting...  
"But you, my son-"  
"Don't call me that." Ettoreo snarled out, clenching his fists even tighter as he kept his eagle-like eyes on him.  
"Have the spirit for killing." The man continued on, as if the younger hadn't even spoke, and suddenly, he was behind Ettoreo and forcing his arms up, shoving a gun into his hand and aiming it as Benny's head.

 

Who didn't flinch, only stared Ettoreo in the eyes. Now, they were afraid, because he couldn't get out of this, his finger was on the trigger, Van-Durven's covering it.  
"Show me. That you know..." his father whispered in his ear, slowly moving his hands away to let Ettoreo hold the gun and he didn't move it away from Benny's head.

 

"How to kill."


	40. Chapter 40

The sound of the door opening, feet running, someone shouting - it was all too much to process at once, just staring into those green-and-silver eyes, that held no fear that his life could just end, by a simple twitch of the finger. And then it would all be over...

Maybe his... Van-Durven will let him keep Ari alive, Mayne he'd let him see his mother, see Bianca... and all of those were thoughts filtering inside of his mind, but he knew none of them were possibilities.  
He knew Van-Durven as a father, and he knew Van-Durven as a monster, and he caused suffering to /everyone/, Ettoreo wasn't an exception. No one was. 

This man received and forced what he wanted and never gave back... ever.  
Which is why he didn't act on the thoughts, which is why he stilled his finger. And he just couldn't, not ever.

Benny placed his trust in him, and with how he acted, that was a bit leap for him and there was no way Ettoreo was going to betray it. He may act like it, yes, but he would never do it.

 

A sudden hand kick to the bottom of his hand made them fly up, him being surrounded by it, he accidentally pulled the trigger, only shooting the wall a foot above Benny.  
A kick to the back of his knee made him fall, and Ettoreo just took it. That's all he did, there was no reason to fight back.

Finally, a knee to the face sent him to the side, it was not as hard as it could've been, and he was glad for that. Though it fueled the pain in his head, from being hit against the desk.  
And he was on the floor, hitting the ground with a thump. Ettoreo's ears started to ring after a moment of laying on the ground - just staying there so he could gather his bearings up once more and from coherent thoughts.   
He was going to set the gun down, honest. But no one gave him enough time to do it.

Always jumping to conclusions before finding out the facts, but maybe that was a good thing, Van-Durven could've forced him to shoot.  
Like he forced him away from his mother, and yes... Ettoreo had fought as hard as he could. But his body was small and he couldn't ever win against that man - but now, that he's older...

He could fight back, and he could win... he could.

 

~

 

The two stopped at the oak tree, a small smile filtered on Mario's face as he touched it, gingerly. Almost as if he was remembering something about his past that was a good memory, "This house belong to to my grand father, my father's father - and uh, I'd come here sometimes, with my friend. And we'd practice climbing it, hiding away from our parents until we had to go." He rubbed the tree just a bit before looking at her, and there was a far away look in his eyes, as if he had no idea why he was telling her about his past.

But perhaps he had held it in too long and she was someone who was willing to listen to him, he wouldn't pass up that opportunity. And she was looking at him with a curious expression, but she didn't talk. Understanding, knowing, when someone just needed to talk and just get everything off of their chest.

"His name is Romano, and uh... we were friends ever since... we were born, I think. He's not here, working with us. Thankfully, he managed to get out." Mario was relieved that he got out, that he was able to live his life without anyone trying to interfere with it.  
They saw each other, sometimes at least... when Mario was able to sneak out, or, got permission to go.

"I'm glad he's out, but I miss him." Mario finished as he dropped down to a crouch, a slight sigh making its way from him. He was glad that Romano could live his life, but he wished he was with him.  
It did feel like a weight has been lifted off of him, even if there was a tightening of sadness replacing it. If they could get this- when... when they get this finished, he could go see his friend again...  
And hell, if that wasn't inspiring, than what would be?

 

And though Arizona didn't respond to him, that was fine. The silence was welcomed and he knew there wasn't much you could save to a person who didn't believe, they were all too stupid and thickheaded to actually get it in there.  
It would take an act of God to make that person believe.

 

After little bit of digging, Mario found what he was looking for and pulled it up and open, very slowly.  
Then, he stood up and looked down into the darkness, brushing his hands off on his pants, then he turned his attention to Arizona, "Ladies first?" He was, trying to polite, but then he realised the error of his mistake when she turned her sharp green eyes to him and frowned.

 

"Oh, yeah... right... I just- the door." He motioned to it and then at the hole in the ground, "I can get it." She said, almost in a voice like she didn't want him to argue with her.  
And he didn't consider arguing with her, he just wanted to inform her that it would be heavy.

"Its gonna be heavy." Mario said as he turned and started to go cautiously down the latter, being wary about any broken steps, thankfully, there were none. And if there was, they would've broken under his weight, he took a couple steps back and listened as Arizona made her way down here by pulling the door shut, blocking out the light from outside and then slowly coming down, trying to watch where she was stepping, "There's a missing step after the second one you take."

Mario informed as he walked up behind her and place a hand near (not on) her back, just in case she were to miss it and fall.  
But being informed of it, she was able to climb down without having any accidents.

 

"Okay, we need to find Bianca." Ari said after she was on the ground, brushing off her dress and then turning around. She immediately frowned at the darkness, she could barely see two feet in front of her, and it didn't help that Mario practically grew up in this place.  
It also didn't help that he didn't have her trust fully, she was working on it and knowing a glimpse into his life, that was helping. And agreeing to do what she wanted to do, that was also earning her trust.

Suddenly, a hand touched her wrist and she craned her head to see Mario, "I'll lead you." He told her, but his hand was loose, almost waiting for her permission. The girl nodded lightly, because what other choice did she have? Other than to take his hand and walk with him, it was the only option that... she could actually see.

And a faint smile came to her face as she nodded, and then started after him, the shoes she was wearing - making a light clicking noise as she walked, but for the most part, their steps were light.  
They walked a few feet, turned right, walked for a few more feet and then walked down the stairs, turned left and suddenly, he let go of her and moved over to the wall, flipping a switch and dim light flooded the area.

Then, there was no words for how awful it looked... cages. Metal bars going up a few feet, and then mesh and barb wire covering the top so no one could stand up.  
"Mario..." Arizona whispered as she looked at him with horror all over her face, and he just shook his head, "I never wanted this for them." And he sounded so sad, like it was true. And it was... it was.

But he couldn't let all of them out, not right away. But he would get them out, they just needed Bianca first. And he quickly moved over to where she was and started to fumble with the lock, not looking to her as she was curled up on the bedroll he had provided for her and the rest of them (nearly fifteen people).

 

"Arizona, no. Not yet." Mario said when she started to walk over to another 'cage', she stopped and then looked at him. Almost as if she was accusing him of not helping these people, "We don't know what they will do." He said, almost as if trying to get some sense into her skull.

And it dawned on her, realising they couldn't leave on their own and they could blame Mario for what happened to them.  
So, she could understand why it was a 'no' to doing that.  
Once Mario was sure that the girl understood, he was looking back at Bianca and pulling the door open for her, "Come on, we need to go. Ettoreo is here." Mario said once he stepped back and watched her wake up, blue eyes wide as she quickly left the cage and grabbed Mario's shoulders tightly.

"Where?"

 

~

 

She felt much looser now, and sure, they were a tad big, but the clothes fit and she could move much more easily now. And she didn't have to worry about getting the skirt dirty or tripping over herself.  
And the shoes were big, but they stayed in her feet and honestly, she couldn't complain. Not really.

Not when she was running up the stairs, after finding abandoned guns, after she had her an Italian voice cry out about where she could find them, and she ran like she hadn't ever before. Her brother, the man she cared for, their life was on the line and nothing was going to deter her from saving them.

And she burst through the door, striking out before anyone ever had a chance to register what was going on.


	41. Chapter 41

It was hard for him to register what was going on, a lot of the times it was. He was a bit slow, yes, but he never acted like he was and just acted on the instincts he had. Then he would find out what he did, a tad bit later.  
He saw his sister come in, but he didn't know how she got here, he didn't know where she learned how to take someone off guard like that and he couldn't honestly care less that he was shot at.

He knew that their guide wouldn't actually shoot him, he didn't know... really - he had this feeling, that be wouldn't, that he could trust him. With small amounts of trust, growing bigger every time, but what had just went down, was actually a big leap for him. It was scary to jump that far, but he couldn't go back, he didn't want to stay still, so Benny went forward.

 

Literally. He stood up and slid over the table to kick Van-Durven, Ettoreo's father, from what he gathered, hard in the side so he wouldn't reach Arizona, but the table didn't last long and soon, Benny was on his feet and quickly hopping over Ettoreo, who was awake and just laying on the ground, despite what was suddenly going on.  
Sure, every once in a while, you needed to take a breather, but not right fücking now!!

 

Benny rammed his shoulder into a wall, his eyes briefly meeting Van-Durven's and he did not hesitate to punch that man in the face with all the strength he had.  
Then a sharp below to the nose and Benny delivered an uppercut, "You need to get him and yourself, out of here, right now." He said as he continued to hit Van-Durven, not giving him time to respond, because if he did, he was sure that he would be paying for it with a knife in his chest.  
"Your phone!" Ari cried out as she pulled Ettoreo to his feet and shoved him out of the room, to the side because he wasn't being much help on his feet right now.  
"Why the hell would you need my phone?!" Benny shouted as he kicked the man in the side of the knee, bringing him down to the ground where Benny assumed that was where he'd spend his time.

"Just give it to me! I left mine at the hotel!" Ari shouted, the man groaned slightly and then pulled his phone out, tossing it to his sister, who caught it and started to rapidly tap, getting into his phone and then going over to the section where she needed to-  
And when she raised her green eyes, she saw Van-Durven up on his feet, "Benny! Watch out!" She shouted, but it wasn't enough because Benny wasn't fast enough - and the man grabbed her brother's arm and quickly twisted it in a position it shouldn't be in.

Then there was a loud snap, and a loud cry from Benny as his arm broke from the strength that was used and the position it wasn't supposed to be in.  
Ari didn't waist her time on words, or going to get Benny as she ran at Van-Durven, moving around her brother and punching the man in the jaw, hearing his teeth clack together as he didn't expect a move so powerful from a girl.

She attempted to kick the big man in the knee, but that's when he punched her. Hard, catching her left check and knocking her off balance, tripping over Benny and crying out as her back hit the ground, listening as he made a sobbing noise of pain.  
Oh God, she hoped that she hadn't landed on his arm. And now the was blood in her mouth, only because she had bitten her tongue a bit harder than intended.

 

While both of his 'foes' were down, Van-Durven decided to run out, thankfully he didn't stop to pick Ettoreo up, or stop to do anything. He was just trying to get out and away, naturally, he would call his guards to come and help him. But he actually allowed them to leave for tonight, which was stupid on his part.

But he knew he'd get them.

 

~

 

Ari sat up and quickly turned to her brother, who was now sitting up with his back against the wall, gripping his arm and trying to control the pain by not showing it.  
It was hard to because, you could easily see it in his eyes. All the noises that he was forcing himself to hold inside, and she looked at his arm and saw it just handing there, it still had a form but... it just looked limp.  
Luckily it wasn't an open fracture.

"God, your arm." Ari whispered softly, but she didn't move to touch it, because she was smarter than that, it would be like poking a rabid bear. She did compare her brother to a bear because he could get really cranky when someone woke him, and when he was touched when he didn't want to be touched, which was nearly all the time he was around people.  
He has learned that people had a hurting hand and not a healing one...

 

And her heart dropped down to her feet when she heard three gunshots, all together and then a final one, "What the hell?" She muttered as she paused, and then she remembered Mario and Bianca, who didn't seem to follow her up the stairs, oh God, he hoped they were fine.  
She honestly couldn't do this without Mario and she didn't want Bianca to leave Ettoreo.

"Where do you... get the... clothes?" Benny asked, obviously noticing the new clothing she was wearing, and his breath was short, in light pants.  
Trying to figure out how to put this energy somewhere else and trying to not think of everything at the same time, like how Van-Durven hit his sister and then ran off with it, it was not that easy to get away from Benjamin. Especially when he wanted revenge.

But he wouldn't put it as revenge, he'd put it in as justice. Only a thousand times worse and probably very illegal.  
"Mario gave them to me, just, don't go anywhere - I'm going to go see what happened." Ari told her brother, and with that, she was standing up and leaving the room so she could figure out where the gunshots came from. He would like to know that she would be okay, but he didn't know, and there wasn't much he could do. Other than feel the pain inside of his arm and wishing it would go away, but yes, he survived a fücking collapsed lung.

He knew he could survive this.  
Benny made a noise in the back of his throat as he slowly slid up the wall, leaning on it for support, on my so he could regain the feeling in his legs. And he wasn't going after his sister, he was going to sit down in the chair and wait for her to return. Because she was coming back.

And the moment he sat down in the metal chair, he gave a groan of pain and looked to his arm, it still hurt like hell. But there was nothing else he could do for himself.

 

~

 

"Mario, shoot him!" Bianca yelled out from behind him when they saw Van-Durven running down the stairs, and he was rather fast for a fat guy. Mario would never purposely miss, but his hand was shaking and his aim was off. He could usually hit it dead on, but the weight of the gun just didn't feel right in his hand.

But nonetheless, he shot - three times, at his father and missed. Every single shot, then the gun was pulled from his grasp and Bianca shoved him over, "You're a bad aim." The woman muttered to him before she slowly aimed, and it hurt his 'feelings'.  
It made him feel a bit bad... And if he couldn't feel like this, he wouldn't. But the man couldn't help it.

He was a bit upset over those words. Alas, the blonde man didn't show it upon watching Bianca shoot Van-Durven in the shoulder, but he still got out of the door and away from the house.  
It wasn't hard to guess where he was going, and Mario was about ready to tell the woman to held the gun, then Ari was shouting down the stairs about Benny getting hurt.

 

They were just going to let his father get away?! This might be their on my chance...  
"Leave him, he's not going anywhere." Bianca said when Mario was looking at the floor with mixed emotions in his eyes, but she grabbed his shoulder and then started to take him up the stairs.

 

"What happened to him?" Bianca demanded, the moment they got to the room and she saw Ettoreo lying on the ground with his eyes closed, the girl looked at but guilty before she replied; "I kneed him in the head because he was going to shoot my brother, but that's not what happen; Benny's arm is broken and I don't know how to set it back into place."

But that was something Mario knew how to do, he knew how to set his own arm back into place because that was how his father would sometimes punish him and others, which is why he was glad he knew a few things about medical assistance.  
How to sow a bullet wound or a stab one, which is what he should've done to Benjamin when they first got here, but now they didn't have enough time to do it. Not anymore.

 

"I know how to set his arm back into place, but he's going to need something to hold onto, the pain will be grave - Bianca, I need you to go find a pillow case, something like that, anything we can use to make a sling with." Mario walked into the room, stepping over Ettoreo's legs and going over to Benny, who looked like he was about to pass out, but his eyes were still open.  
"Making a plan without me? Now that's unfair." He made a lazy smile, but her eyes were filled with so much pain, which is why he'd need something to block the pain, but he didn't want this man to collapse... therefore; Mario turned to Arizona and pointed out the door, "Follow Bianca, go to a silver door, it's a medical area - I need epinephrine and marcaine. Also a syringe and a needle."

"Adrenaline and anesthetic." Ari muttered under her breath, then she nodded and ran off to go find Bianca, or a silver door to get what they needed.  
"I've always wanted adrenaline... But needles aren't my favorite... did you know that Van-Durven lied to you and Ettoreo? He's also Ettoreo's father. And Bianca is your mother." Benny muttered as he looked up at him, it was everything he wanted to say, honestly, but not in the right way.

 

And Mario paused for a second, just staring at Benny before Bianca came back in and had a pillowcase, ready to make a sling for Benny's arm when needed.  
"Here, here." Ari said as she quickly came back in with small bottles, one with both of the liquids he needed, she quickly fixed the syringe and the needle and then set it down.  
"Give him something to hold and bite down on." Mario untrusted after he had finished with his long look of disbelief, he didn't want to believe it and he wounding until he had gotten the real truth.

Once Benny was gripping Ari's hand and bitting down on his own belt, Mario took the jacket off of the man and then half of his shirt, "Okay... one... two... three."  
And then he put the bone back into place.


	42. Chapter 42

Benny breathed in and out as he rested his face on the metal table, his grey and green eyes barely open, but they were to make sure Mario was actually doing what he said he'd be doing.  
Having your arm set back into place was not a good feeling at all, and then the feeling of pain and tingling afterwards? No, no. No.

It wasn't fun getting his arm broken, and it wasn't fun having it set back into place. The next part wouldn't be anymore fun than the other parts, needles... He didn't like them, but that doesn't mean he was afraid of.  
He was not afraid of them, he just didn't like them going in or going out, and he didn't not want them going anywhere near his mouth, eyes, ears, nose- practically his whole face. He didn't want them near his crotch either. No, no, no-

"Ow!" Benny yelped out when he felt the needle pierce his skin, apparently while he was babbling in his head, his sister had gotten the dosage for the adrenaline and the anesthetic ready.  
And then gave it to Mario who did it while Benny wasn't paying attention, was it really that easy to tell he was paying no mind to them?

 

"How does that feel?" Mario asked after a moment, putting a bandaid over it; oh, how thoughtful of him.  
"I don't feel anything." Benny complained breathlessly. He didn't remember if he had said anything to Mario when he was high on pain, God he hoped he hadn't said anything - that would be very embarrassing, because he has been told that he says a lot of things when he's drunk (which isn't often) or high on pain, but all of them are truths.

He just doesn't form them in a orderly manner which makes them seem like truths.  
"Oh, hey- what?" He mumbled when he then felt something pulling him up to a sitting position, he winced slightly at the pain - but being a detective, he was a master at disguise. And figuring things out.

Mario and some woman with greying hair was touching him again, she positioned his injured arm at a different angle, making him groan slightly, then a rather large piece of fabric was being placed under his arm and across his opposite shoulder, then it gingerly came up and he was asked a couple times if that would be okay (they had to adjust it just once), and then it was tied behind his neck and now he was wearing a sling.

Thank God it was his left arm, he needed his right hand because it was dominant. With nearly everything he did.  
Benny turned his attention away from his now numbing arm and to where his sister was, kneeling over Ettoreo and injecting him with some Epinephrine.

 

"Is he okay?" Bianca asked, moving away from Benny to go check on her son. Yeah... son, he did not know the story, he didn't (really) want to know the story. And besides, he was sure Ettoreo was fine after getting kicked in the head by his sister.  
He heard that she could break a thick board of wood by kicking it with half the strength she had, and yes - she kicked things when she was angry. One time, she kicked him in the shin... it hurt for weeks and she was really satisfied with herself.

How he was glad that Kaylee couldn't kick like that, then he'd be worried about not being able to have kids.  
And then it goes back to the argument where he doesn't want kids. He honestly doesn't... for fear of turning out like his own father. And because he isn't married...  
Those are the reasons why he doesn't want kids.

 

~

 

Arizona knelt beside Ettoreo and gently inserted the Epinephrine into his system, he wasn't necessarily doing anything. He was just paying there with a dazed look on his head, and she was hoping that she didn't accidentally crack his skull open, because she was still trying to figure out how strong she was.

She just needed him to wake up, they had to finish this, and quickly, "Who are you?" Bianca asked, after a moment when Ettoreo didn't do anything, but he was still breathing, just very dazed from the bowl to his head, if his eyes were any indication to that.  
"Arizona, the supposed-to-be victim of Van-Durven, Ettoreo is probably the only reason why I'm here and alive." Ari said that with such fondness in her tone, even Bianca couldn't help with her smile. It was more sad than anything else and she didn't even know why, maybe she was hoping that she'd have more time with him, to catch up... with what she missed and more than anything, she just wanted to be with him.

I thinks be was kinda hoping that Arizona wouldn't take that away from her. Maybe another day, but not any day soon. Maybe she was selfish that way, wanting her own son all to herself, wanting both of her son's to herself to make up for all the lost years she had missed. Especially with Maso... or, Mario. She was gone from his life for a very, very long time.

And she was so guilt ridden that she hadn't done anything to find him... she could've done something to stop Robert from taking her sons. She could've, but she didn't.  
For that, Bianca was very upset with herself.

 

"Uhng..." Ettoreo stirred after a moment, his face scrunching up for a moment as he found two woman sitting in front of him, one was a woman he cared for and the other one...  
"How could you not tell me?! All of these years!" Ettoreo suddenly shouted when his eyes landed on Bianca, he was feeling betrayed and very upset that he grew up knowing that be had know parents, thinking he had no parents.

When he would live with his mother for days at a time, thinking that she was his aunt but feeling something deeper than a nephew would for his aunt, he felt that it was just something silly because she was there for him when he needed her, but it all made sense now, he loved her because he knew that she was his mom, but he just didn't remember it and she never told him.

They could've done something sooner... He was so sure of it.  
Though he just shouted at her, despite missing her and how it hurt to yell at his own mother (that still hasn't sank in properly.), Ettoreo still felt betrayed.  
Bianca was not angry with his outburst, instead, she looked sad because Robert had told him, she was supposed to be the one to do that.

She wanted to be the one to do that, even though his blow up might be bigger if she had told him...  
Her voice was calm as she spoke to her slightly enraged son, "If I told you and if you decided to make a move on them, then they would've killed your brother." Bianca said, the words flowing out of her mouth smoothly as her attention was now on Mario.

 

Who left Benny on the chair, grumbling about how they switch to Italian faster than he switches to French.  
"So it's true then?" Mario asked, taking a look to Ettoreo, and then to Bianca, and she dipped her head slightly, "Your..." her voice broke a little bit as she held in the tears, "Your name is Maso. His name is Elpidio."

There was no denying the surprise on Mario's face as he looked down at his mother, unsure of what to say exactly, "And I am Elda Bianca Nero."  
"Okay- guys, I really had to bust the bubble of reunion-" apparently Benny was feeling better, considering he was now standing and walking (limping slightly), over to them, "But we really need to get to Van-Durven before he leaves."

 

And he knew he was right when they all look at each other. Who knows, the man could already be gone because of their dilly-dallying.  
Some of it was his fault, but still - going now was the best idea.

Ari stood up and offered her hand down to Ettoreo and Bianca, "My brother is right - we don't know where he is, or where he's going to go." Once the two took her hand, she pulled them up to their feet and then let go, taking a hold of the epinephrine and the syringe, "Go on, I'll catch up." She said, motioning them to go on ahead.

Benny gave his sister a light look, but he didn't argue with her - instead he walked after Mario, who was still putting the puzzles together in his head. But leading the way because he did know where his father would go, while not knowing his past, he knew him.  
What his strategies were, what he'd do next... And what would happen in case of something like this ever happened, and he sure as hell hadn't been expecting it to come from his own son... sons... oh yeah - they'd be sure to know that he fücked with the wrong people.

"Be careful." Ettoreo muttered as be squeezed Ari's hand lightly, then be was going after Mario and Bianca, no, he was keen on calling them family just yet. Be still had to register it in his mind that this was really happening, before be could ever register that he had a family know.  
And no, he hadn't ever considered his 'father' apart of it. And he never would ever...

~

Ari stood there for a moment, her hand lingering in the air, Ettoreo's touch on her mind. So many things were just buzzing around in her mind, and the reason why she had to stay behind...  
Oh, the phone! And she wanted to have a couple of syringes full of both of the liquids, for a 'just in case' reason - it was likely her brother didn't actually want her to handle a gun.

Even if she knew how to use it, he might even be relieved that she decided to stay behind. But, hell... if he knew what she was doing, he'd strangle her himself for lying to him.

 

Sometimes you have to lie to protect people, he'd also kill her because his phone bill was going up high.  
Ari quickly got herself back into Benny's phone and tapped in the number she needed, putting it to her ear and holding her breathing, praying the man she needed would be up.  
"Hello? Arizona?! What the-"  
"Oh, thank God." She cried out in relief, hanging her head just a bit and then exhaling, on the other line, there seemed to be a form of cursing in another language and it was all directed at her, and a really loud noise that was constant.  
"I need your help." Arizona was about ready to explain when she was cut off from speaking, the man interrupting her, "How dare you to off the grid?! It took us forever to find you. You better be God-damm grateful I'm coming to pick your sorry äss up and then deciding not to skin you alive for what you did. We were all worried for you." The man shouted to her, making her pull the phone away from her ear.

"Wow, you, worried? For me? Hah, I can handle myself without you to watch over me." Ari said with a snort, shaking her head slightly.  
"Worried about what you'd do to the place you're at."  
"Okay, that is extremely offensive." She said, but on second thought, she realized it didn't matter because it was likely they were coming for her phone, "Stop tracking my phone, track this one instead, I need you here- okay? And please, get here quickly." Before things spiralled out of control. Which is what she added silently in her mind.  
"Why?"  
"Don't ask why!" She shouted into the phone, "Just do it!"  
"Alright - see you in a couple hours." And with that, the call ended. And she realised that she had to go, right now.

 

So, she out the phone in her pocket and quickly gathered up the syringes and then just took off.  
She was so relieved to know that someone was coming for them, she was even more relieved that she had decided not to tell the agency that she was going on a vacation.  
Something had just told her to not pick up the phone and tell them she'd be gone for five days, with her brother and most likely without deciding to contact them.

Now they had someone to actually rescue them if something went wrong. Now she just had to find the others and tell the news... as soon as the gunfire ceased...

 

~

 

Leaving his sister behind wasn't something he wanted to do, but walking out of the villa and seeing that there wasn't /anyone/ on duty, he actually felt relieved, "Where is everyone?" He asked Mario, surly he would know. If they got off on this time or Van-Durven had called them to help him kill these people, he hoped it wasn't the second one... that wouldn't be too fun.

"They're off duty." Thank God. They were safe, for now at least. His sister should be fine, or so he hoped. There was no way Benny knew for sure. But what he did know, was she could handle herself, she just me or proving that, over and over again and he was actually refusing to see it.  
He could convince himself that she wasn't ready for the world, that she still needed him to protect her... but he shouldn't be convincing himself like that... when he knew it was the other way around.

He needed her to protect him. From being alone and that's why it was so hard to let go...  
"Where would he go?" Ettoreo spoke up after a moment, and why the hell were they walking?! Van-Durven might be gone already.

"To the garage." Mario replied as they rounded a bend - and at the end of a gravel driveway, was a huge, steel building. Which is... where the blood trail went.  
"Give me the gun." Benny said as he took one of them from Mario, since he couldn't really fight with one arm, he was just going to shoot. And he intended to shoot and kill, so long as the others didn't get in his way. He really did not want friendly fire written on his records.  
Or theirs.

 

"Are you a good shot?" Bianca asked him, her blue eyes sizing Benjamin up and he gave her a frown, it would make a big difference if he was a good shot, "Yes, I am. But stay out of my way, I don't want to shoot anyone." Benny said as he checked the clip, allowing his broken arm to hold the gun while he counted seven more bullets left.  
And to be honest, he couldn't feel pain in his arm anymore, but he knew if he tried to fight with it... it would obviously end up in a worse state than it was in already.

"He knows we are coming - be ready." Mario whispered once they reached the entrance, he held the doorknob for a moment before he pushed open the door and got inside quickly, there were a few semi-trucks in the back of the building, a couple crates off the the side, but no one was to be found.  
Ettoreo came in next, then Bianca and Benny was the last one inside.

 

He held the gun firmly in his hand, looking around, tense and waiting. He really didn't expect the kick to come out of nowhere, but it did. And it hit him in the knee, and he almost went completely down - almost. Which was a half good and half bad thing that he didn't, he could've had his arm stepped on and broken further by the man.  
Instead, he was kicked in the injured arm, and yes, he felt the pain. Which also meant that he dropped the gun, watching helplessly as it skidded away from him, out of his reach.

 

"Shìt," Benny cursed as he quickly dropped his uninjured arm down and moved himself away from the fight; Ettoreo had turned when he heard the thump, feeling the hairs on the back of his neck stand up when he realised that was not a good sound.  
And he saw Van-Durven hurting Benny, making him drop the gun, go out of his reach... but before the man could do anything else, Ettoreo was on him.

And hell, he was probably the only one of them who had no idea how to fight, all he knew was he had to cause pain and go for the soft parts of this man. He actually did know how to fight, he just... didn't know how to fight... different styles of fighting.  
Especially with Van-Durven, he was sure to know a whole like more than him. If he were to get hurt, who cares - to make sure Benny was okay...

The younger man shouted out and punched Van-Durven in the face, putting all his force into it, but it wasn't enough to stun him, because the next thing the younger knew, was someone had punched him in the stomach and in his jaw, now he was laying on the ground panting in pain. Thankfully Mario and Bianca - wait, his mother could fight?!

~

Bianca on my had to share a glance with Mario before they were attacking in sync with each other- Mario punched him in the stomach a couple of times, putting the force and strength he knew he had, into every one.

While Bianca, while small and a bit older than her sons, punched the man in his jaw and then aimed for his side, catching his kidneys and then kicking him hard in the groin, right before he could do anything.  
But he was acting as if it was nothing, because his hand was wrapped around her throat and closing her air way off, and his free hand was punching her lungs, as hard as he could - it felt like he was breaking her ribs.

Where had Mario gone?!  
Currently lying on the ground with a pain in the right side of his face. 

He glanced to Ettoreo for a brief moment and then to Bianca and Van-Durven, his eyes catching sight of the bullet wound in the back of his shoulder, that's it. That's it!  
"Get up!" Mario said as he grabbed his supposed brother and pulled him to his feet- Mario didn't wait for him though, he was upon his father again, this time, he was going for the weak spot; the bullet wound in his shoulder.

His fingers quickly dug into the flesh and pushed inside as far as he could and listened with satisfaction as his father cried out and let go of Bianca, that was the only person he was worried about.  
Van-Durven turned around quickly, making Mario's blood stained fingers rip some flesh away as they came from the bullet hole.  
And next thing he knew, was he was getting kicked down on his knees and he was being punched over and over on his face, his nose breaking, blood trickling out of it.

~

And while Ettoreo was about ready to make a decision, Benny had already made one for him, he was up on his feet, he held the gun and it was pointed at Van-Durven.  
So now he was going to go check on Bianca.

Kneeling beside her he checked her breathing and found that she was still alive, thankfully.  
But then came to the matter of his brother... whom his father was using for as a shield.  
"Let go of him." Benny demanded as he held his gun up, ready to shoot, but certainly not with Mario in the way. He wasn't going to harm anyone who wasn't trying to kill him.

"Just take that shot." Mario hissed out, he really didn't care if he got shot because the feeling of pain wasn't new. There wasn't any kind of pain that he has already felt.  
And he could tell Benjamin that, he could. But before be spoke, Benny shot twice, but Mario nor his father flicnhed because it was only warning shots, to show that he was serious about kill Van-Durven, no matter the way he had to...

Then his eyes caught the faintest of movements behind the man he wanted to kill...  
The side door, and... his sister. She had come through the side door to get behind Van-Durven.  
And all of it, went down in a blink of an eye. Ari jumped jump from behind the man and stuck a needle in his wound, and another one in his neck - making him yell out in pain as she administered the liquid into his system. Mario took the chance of his father's weakening grip and quickly slammed his elbow against the man's stomach - making him let go completely.

"Take the shot!" Arizona screamed as the man just slowly started to turn - Benny held the fun up and shot the man in the chest, twice. And he paused for just a second... And then he fell backwards, missing Arizona narrowly as she too moved away from the dead man.

And just like that... it was over.


	43. Book Ending

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is the book ending of the novel, or, the real ending.  
> It's rather upsetting, so don't read it if you don't like sorrow.
> 
> There is also an alternate ending if you wanted a happy one

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Recommended music;  
> The Ends of the Earth - Brian Tyler  
> Porcelain Heart - Barlow Girl  
> Breath No More - Evanescence

Benny lowered the gun after a couple of seconds, a feeling of relief coming over him, as if something had been lifted off of his shoulder, he felt like now he was free, that now his sister would be okay. She would be able to see another day, though he had killed someone to make sure she'd get there.

If he was honest with himself, he would kill anyone to make sure that his sister was alive, safe and well.  
Anyone. Anyway he could.

And just maybe... Benny turned his eyes to watch his sister stand up and walk over to one of the crates, sitting down on it and just sighing slowly, putting her head in her hands - her mind reply the scene over and over again. And she didn't really think that she killed someone, yes, she helped to kill one...  
And if she got accepted into the CIA... then she'd be killing more people. Maybe Ari had just lowered her own chances of going to heaven... considering she actually did kill someone, once... a very long time ago. She was so scared upon doing it, making the decision.

It would always weigh on her shoulders, no matter what anyone said... or didn't say, not many knew about it. Defiantly not her brother...  
There was a bit of shuffling - Bianca was now getting up to her feet, seeing that Robert was dead... a sense of relief just came over all of them. And it blanketed the Niro family the most, gone was their father who had threatened them and controlled them their whole lives.

And now, they were free.

~

A tired smile came across Benny's face as he looked at Ettoreo, watching him embrace Bianca and Mario, maybe he was coming to accept the fact that he had a family and he should spend a whole lot more time with them... after they got every thing cleared up, that is.

He was the one who actually had a death hanging over his head, but at least he could claim it was self-defense, and it was. How would Benny be able to bring this in front of... court... or-  
You know, just thinking about it made his head start to throb - it made a pain start up in his arm (not necessarily caused by thinking-) the anesthetics most likely wore off. Which means he needed to go to the hospital to get this and the stab wound looked at.

 

They'd be fine if he left them here, the question was; would Benny be fine out on his own? He had a feeling that now it would... be... easier to let go... of his sister, as in, allow her to be her own woman.  
Make her own life decisions because she showed him, and he was accepting, that now, she could handle herself. And... maybe that was another relief. Certainly - this was an unforgettable vacation.  
All vacations he had - and this would be the last, they were never leaving the country or the state, ever again.

If this was to be the outcome every single time... Benny chuckled to himself dryly as he walked past Van-Durven's body and dropped the gun beside him, finally reaching the panel on the wall and hitting the button on it, the garage started to open slowly, showing a bit of light from the sun rising in the horizon, telling him to just put the past away.  
And walk. And not look back.

 

Ettoreo pulled away from his mother and brother after a moment, leaving those two to hug each other. He heard Benny leave, figuring what he'd be doing. But he didn't want anyone to accompany - no one followed after him, they just let him walk away.

Right now, Ettoreo wanted to be with Arizona. He was just so glad that she was okay; he sat down beside her and looked at her. But she didn't look at him, instead, she exhaled and then leaned on his shoulder, closing her eyes.  
And Ettoreo smiled slightly, a tired smile. But he wrapped his arms around her shoulders and just held her close.

Allowing her to just... relax and be. 

 

~

 

And for once in his life, his mind was still, it was focused on getting himself to the hospital quickly.  
The sun greeted Benny's face and he couldn't help the smile on his face as he closed his eyes against the sun, it was a bit chilly out - but the sun that was rising, it would give him some relief.

 

Another step on the gravel, proved to be his last.

 

Two gunshots rang out, coming from behind him... his fatal error... Benny's eyes were widened as he stood there, feeling his legs shaking, attempting to hold up the now dead weight of his, and this was the hardest part - to realise what was true.  
his eyes slowly titled down to look at his white shirt, to watch the growing red - soaking the front of it... Benny took in a raspy breath and then- the truth that he couldn't deny, blood.

Coming from his mouth. A thin trickle, but it was enough to make him cough and choke on it.  
"Benny!" A distant voice shouted, full of panic, full of fear - but he couldn't tell who it was. He couldn't, and that was the thing that scared him, he couldn't tell the difference anymore.  
Benny couldn't feel anything - all he could feel was cold, not pain, not his limbs... he couldn't feel a damm thing that was apart of his body.  
His legs collapsed under his body, and he fell down to the ground with a thump - pain probably would've spread like a wildfire, blood coming into his mouth quicker, blood was sure to be coating the ground by now - all he could do was cough and feel his body shake.

Benny didn't know if he felt relief any more, a faint gasp his mouth once the blood had spilled over the sides of his mouth. All he saw the grey from the ceiling above him, that was all.

He heard muffled gunshots, muffled screams of his name and he could hear someone landing beside him, some one grabbing his shoulders, shaking him slightly, trying to get his eyes to focus on them, but it was so hard to when you were seeing different things...  
And it was safe to assume, he was stuck in between life and death, unsure of which one to choose.

~

Bianca was too slow to react, Arizona was, everyone was... a bullet to the chest hadn't been enough to put Van-Durven down, once again, it was like things were in slow motion, watching as the man sat up, holding the gun and aiming it at Benny's back.

Arizona stood up and began to scream her brother's name, while at the same time, running to him and hoping she could reach them in time. But that's the thing about hope, it's always too dangerous to have, and yet you do any way... she didn't reach him in time.

The gun was shot twice, and both times it struck Benny, all she could do was utter a yell- and it was over the moment it started.  
Bianca was the second one who reacted, taking the gun from Mario's hands, she aimed it, not hesitating, she pulled the trigger twice - shooting Van-Durven in the neck once, then once one in his head. So he fell back, the gun dropping from his hand. And there was no way he could come back from that.

 

Air took one glance at Bianca, then she was running over to where her brother had fallen, Ettoreo on her heels so he could help her.  
She cried out to her brother, even though it fell on deaf ears; once she reached him, she immediately dropped down to her knees, not caring about the rocks that were scratching them up, she sobbed slightly and grabbing his shoulders as he was staring up at the ceiling. Not registering that she was here, yet... oh God, please let it be a 'yet'.

 

Blood was still soaking through the front of his shirt, where she pushed a strong hand against it in an attempt to stop the bleeding while her brother laid on her lap limply, "B-Benny! N-no! Please!" She cried out, tears already running down her face as she pushed her hand against his front in a desperate attempt to stop the bleeding while her other hand pressed against his back, where his spine was... where the blood was coming from, where the bullet wound was.

"Benny- nuh, no." She cried out when she heard his ragged gasping, felt how tense his body was and his eyes searching for something and then; every thing froze. For a second time... Ettoreo's presents behind her as he moved to use his own shirt to stop the blood from Benny's wound, Bianca and Mario coming up. Panic evident in their movements...

As Ari blinked away the tears, she looked down at her brother and into his eyes, ready to say something else to get him to calm down, to calm his breathing. A look of confusion came over her brother's grey eyes and he tilted his head to look at Ari, and then he opened his mouth to form a single word.

 

"Tina?" It was a gasp of her name, a whimper of trying to see the right person, but if he was seeing Tina...  
"No, no, no, no! Benny, no. It's Ari, it's Arizona. Your littlest sister - please." She said, her voice getting lower as she pulled her hands away from his wounds, both of them on his back, but one hand was on the one in the back while the other was putting pressure on the one in the front.

He rested in her lap, allowing her to grab his face with blood stained hands, blood smearing on his cheeks as she held his face, trying to get him to recognize her, to stay down to earth - to stay alive until they could get help. The stench of blood was in the air, but no one recognised it. Their senses wouldn't allow it, and it was hard not to see it; she just didn't want to believe it.

 

Benny's eyes turned away from her, looking once more at the ceiling and she knew it, right there. The look on his face was one of a dying man's, she just didn't want to believe, she wanted to believe that she wouldn't ever spend another Christmas with him, or-or, her birthday... or his.  
"Benny, please..." Ari's heart dropped to her stomach when she heard his breaths getting heavier and faster and all she could do was move her mouth to form the word 'no' over and over again. Where was the help at?! They were supposed to be here by now...  
She couldn't lose him, not now, not now.  
Please, not now...

 

"I love you..." was all he whispered and then he exhaled one last time, then... his eyes just... lost the spark. And he stopped breathing, his body was tense for a couple seconds before going limp, and her green eyes were wide, bright and shining with tears. Just holding his face, and waiting for him to start breathing again, she hoped-

But nothing came.  
Ettoreo sat back, his eyes wide and his breathing heavy - trying to control himself, from touching Ari and pulling her away, but that wasn't want she wanted, she wanted him to breath!

~

And her brother died in her arms.  
Arizona looked down at him - feeling her hope fall apart, feeling something that she thought she could live without, leaving her and making her realise that she couldn't live without him. 

Her head tilted back, and she sucked in a deep breath, more tears coming down her face and she didn't bother to hide them, or hold back her anger. Her hands tightened her grip on her brother, holding him close and then, she screamed into the air, filling it with her anger, sorrow and grief. Drowning out the sound of distant helicopter blades cutting through the air. She called out for Benny as her heart split in two...

 

And how nasty of a scar it would leave.


	44. Alternate Ending

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the alternate, more happy version/ending of this story.
> 
> Music suggest for this is;  
> Only the Beginning of the Adventure - Harry Gregson-Williams  
> Hold On - Succession Studios

Benny lowered the gun after a couple of seconds, a feeling of relief coming over him, as if something had been lifted off of his shoulder, he felt like now he was free, that now his sister would be okay. She would be able to see another day, though he had killed someone to make sure she'd get there.

If he was honest with himself, he would kill anyone to make sure that his sister was alive, safe and well.  
Anyone. Anyway he could.

And just maybe... Benny turned his eyes to watch his sister stand up and walk over to him and placing a gentle hand on his shoulder, "Help is coming, we need to go outside to signal them." And that was just fine with him. Help would be great, his arm was broken and it would be amazing if he had a professional to fix it. And while her brother couldn't see it, her mind reply the scene over and over again. And she didn't really think that she killed someone, yes, she helped to kill one...  
And if she got accepted into the CIA... then she'd be killing more people. It was to protect everyone else, and she supposed that living with that would be okay. It wasn't supposed to be feel right, it was never supposed to feel right...  
But sometimes, you just need to accept the fact that you had to do it, to make other people safe and happy... and alive. So... she could live with this, so long as she made sure she asked for forgiveness for this.

There was a bit of shuffling, behind them - Bianca was now getting up to her feet, seeing that Robert was dead... a sense of relief just came over all of them. And it blanketed the Niro family the most, gone was their father who had threatened them and controlled them their whole lives.

And now, they were free.

~

A tired smile came across Benny's face as he looked at Ettoreo, watching him embrace Bianca and Mario, maybe he was coming to accept the fact that he had a family and he should spend a whole lot more time with them... after they got every thing cleared up, that is.  
Perhaps his sister might even be spending some more time with Ettoreo, it was the fastest he had ever seen someone fall in love.  
And there was just, some things that you knew about that person that didn't need to be said.

Benny just knew it existed, and his sister, Ettoreo, they were proof of it. For once, the thought of her being on her own, made him smile happily. Realising that he did want the best for her, even if the best wasn't with him.  
And that was finally okay! It took a vacation, one vacation that ended like this, for him to see it.

It also took this vacation to realise that they were never, ever, leaving the state or the country they lived in, ever again.  
"Let's go to England next time." Ari said as she leaned against his left side, being careful not to squish his injured arm, a slight smile was playing on her face as they both started to walk to the garage door, intending on opening it.

But looking at his sister, he was not sure if she was joking or not, he couldn't really get more than two words out because he was so... unsure of her motive, "Next time?"  
He sure as hell was going to make sure there was no 'next time'. By-God, if that happened, he was going to kick someone's äss so hard, they'll end up on the moon.

And it would be the very person who dragged him out of his home, out of his state and out of his country.  
He would kick them so hard, they'd become a freaking shooting star. Benny swore to God, he didn't speak anything out loud - but his sister heard it anyway, her smile widened and she gave him a friendly nudge when he pressed the button on the control panel.

"I'll make sure to send you a postcard and a souvenir from the moon." And he just gave her a bewildered look as the giant door opened for the two of them to walk through.  
And once again, she didn't look at him, she only grinning straight ahead, "How did you..?" Benny started to say out loud as he threw the gun to the side the moment he stepped on the gravel, his sister soon falling into step with him; the sun was now coming over over the horizon, casting a yellow-orange glow that had a very calming effect on him.

Just, soothing his mind, and if possible, the pain in his arm as the anesthetic was now wearing off. It didn't really sooth his pain, it just made him feel a whole lot calmer, especially with his sister beside him.  
"I'm your sister, I know how you think." This time, she turned her grin to her brother - he smiled to her after a moment and then glanced to the sky, squinting against the rising sun and wondering how long they had spent awake.

It must've been more than twenty-four hours that his body had been awake. And he could collapse, but he didn't. There was still a little bit of adrenaline left in his system, too bad it wasn't the anesthetic.  
He'd prefer that over the epinephrine.

"Who did you get to help?" Benny was actually supposing it was some Italian police, ambulances... she knew how to speak Italian, so it was likely that was her go-to emergency thing.  
And when she was opening her mouth to answer, two gunshots rang off behind them - interrupting their conversation and making Benny shout in his surprise as he turned around and glared at Ettoreo, who was holding the gun that was supposed to be in Mario's grasp, and he looked up - meeting their eyes with his own, sparkling slightly because of what he had just did.

"I was making sure that he was dead." And he said it so innocently, Benny could not help his annoyed frown, it got even more annoyed when he felt his sister from start to shake with silent laughed, because scaring Benjamin Felocife was so easy.  
"It's not funny, it's not funny when you think your life is in danger." The man said as he wanted to dig his elbow into Ari's side, but didn't want to cause himself pain. So he settle for glaring at his immature sister, perhaps he would take back what he said.

"You need a few more years of being supervised. You and Ettoreo both." He shook his head lightly - but he didn't stop walking, for whatever reason. He just kept going forward, listening as Ettoreo, Bianca and Mario soon were catching up to them.  
"And I take back everything I said about you... in my mind." Benny said as he stopped and tilted his head up to the sky, his ears catching the faintest sounds of helicopters coming nearer.

"Were they nice things?" Ettoreo asked as he came around to Ari's side and put an arm around her, thinking that he defiantly deserved this, a little bit of rest with the person he favored most out of this whole group.  
"Yes." Benny replied - his eyes widening ever slightly as he saw three helicopters in the sky, and then the sound of sirens coming from the road that led up to the villa.

 

"Who got help?" Mario asked as they started to back away from where the helicopters were inclined to land (it was a huge front yard and driveway), three helicopters and probably a whole army of cars.  
Oh, that reminds him, the people in the basement... shìt, this was going to be a hell of a year - there was no way he'd be ready for this. But all he had to do, all of them had to do, was push forward and keep going. If they survived this, then surely they could survive anything else that was thrown at them.

~

"Uh, that would be me." Ari replied once the notice had subsided, the helicopters slowly powered down, the cars were now stopping and she was backing up with Ettoreo, leaving Benny to just stand there, looking at the machines a bit expectantly, he didn't know who these people are, and he just wanted-

"Benjamin Curtis-James Felocife!" Oh... full names were never good, no matter the manner in which they were said. Especially if they were called by this particular person, which he instantly hunched over and closed his eyes as the woman got out of one of the aircrafts and immediately stormed over to him, oh, fück.  
His balls were in danger, "Kaylee, please don't kick me in the balls, I've been through enough and-" his small rant was ended quickly when she grabbed the front of his shirt and kissed him on the lips.

His hand (the left one), splayed out in the makeshift sling when he felt her gentle lips, and for a couple moments, he was too tense to move. Then he relaxed and experimentally moved his lips, his closed eyes now relaxing as he returned the kiss - an odd feeling settled in his stomach, but it was the good kind of odd and he knew that it had been there all along.

 

Ari leaned against Ettoreo as she watched the woman from Benny's work storm up and kiss him, that was a surprise. But still, it was a very good surprise.  
"Who's that?" Ettoreo asked as he motioned to a tall, muscular (not overly), man stepping out of the aircraft and taking a quick look at the two that were kissing before he spotted Ari and Ettoreo, now making his was over to them with a look of annoyance on his face.

"Uh... my 'mentor' in the... United States Central Intelligence Agency..?" The girl whispered, but it was more of a question than an answer.  
The Italian man looked at her for a couple seconds with his mouth agape before it clicked, "Dio Mio! You are-?"  
"Hello, Arizona Felocife. Going off the grid, I ought to kick you the hell out of the agency and then assassinate you." The man said, his tone bordering annoyed and angry at the same time, with a hint of an accent...

And instead of cringing (like Ettoreo was doing), Ari smiled and patted his arm, "Nice to see you too, Layth."  
The man rolled his eyes slightly before looking to Ettoreo, "Who is this?"  
"He helped me. So... I'd like to say he's off the hook."  
"You don't make the calls around here - but I'll consider it." And if that smirk wasn't enough to rattle Ettoreo to the bones...

 

~

 

After a moment, Kaylee pulled away from Benny and he opened his mouth to talk to her when she pulled her arm back and punched him in the crotch, he has felt the full force of her blows, and thank God she wasn't punching from a longer range, nonetheless, it still hurt; it was also hard to determine if he loved this rescue, or hated it.

"I asked you not to hit my balls." Benny groaned as he doubled over, feeling the pain there and in his arm, "You said kick, not punch."  
"Same difference, both times it brings pain." And then he felt a small hand on his back, urging bin to move forward, and he did so. Hopefully he'd have this fixed.

 

~

 

"I have to go..." Ari said as she stood close to Ettoreo, closer than what was necessary, but no one minded, "Will you come with me?" And yes, she was hoping he would say yes and just leave everything behind, but he had family to take care of... he had...  
Ettoreo stopped her thinking with a gentle press of his lips to hers, and it sparked up a million butterflies in the pit of her stomach as she grabbed his wrist, gently - returning the kiss and sighing under her breath.

And when they pulled away, there was a funny smile on her face and her brother's eyes on her, "Funny... it's only been four days..." she paused a moment to look up at the sky, "Love at first sight is a strange thing..."

A slight smile came to his face as he grabbed her hand and threaded their fingers together, "There is no such thing as love at first sight, but there is such a thing as love at first... touch." And then he kissed her lips again, softly and with a sad smile playing on his face.  
"I promise I will come by soon."  
And then there was a true sad face on her smile because she wasn't sure if he'd hold to his word, "Have I ever broken your trust?" Ettoreo asked her, golden eyes piercing her green ones, seeing them filled with tears. And she shook her head, "Not really."

He chuckled lightly before giving her a peck on the head, "I'll be coming by as soon as I can." They had to let go of each other, Ari climbed into the aircraft beside her brother, her heart thumping wildly as she started at the man, "I'm trusting you to be there, Ettoreo. My trust is hard to come by." Benny said after a moment, then he waved his hand in goodbye, in near sync with his sister.

A friendly smile played on his face, showing his true emotions - sad to leave, but happy to have met him and hoping that he would return.  
The door shut after a moment and then the helicopter took off into the air, along with the others.

 

All Ettoreo did, was smile sadly and wave goodbye.  
And make a promise; that no matter what happened, he would see them again.


End file.
